Machpela

MACHPELAH

HEBRON

Entering the cave of Machpelah with Noam Arnon

Two successful attempts of entering the cave in 1968 and 1981

More about Machpelah here

According to the Zohar, Adam dug out the cave...

According to the Zohar, Adam dug out Ma'arat HaMachpela:
"What did Adam do? He dug out a cave, and he and his wife were buried there. How did he decide where to dig? He saw a thin ray of light peaking out of that place, coming from the Garden of Eden, and he wanted that place for his grave. That was the place, near the gate to the Garden of Eden. (Zohar Bereshit 57).

"When Seth was born, God elevated Adam above all the lands, high up in the universe, directly above the Land of Israel, at Hebron. There Adam dug himself a grave, fashioning a cave within a cave, adjacent to the Garden of Eden. There his burial took place, as well as that of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the matriarchs.
Rabbi Kisma says: "The Cave of Machpela is adjacent to the entranceway to the Garden of Eden. When Eve died, Adam came to bury her there, and there he smelled the scent of Eden, the very scent that was there. He wanted to dig further, but a heavenly voice went forth and said, 'Enough'. Then and there he stopped and dug no further. And who buried him? His son Seth, who was in his exact image and likeness."

Rav Rechumai said: God took care of him when he was born, and He took care of him when he died. No one knew he was there until Abraham came along. He went into the cave and saw Adam there…"

(Zohar Chadash, Ruth, 79:4)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cave_of_the_Patriarchs

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebron

http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/index.html

WHY DO THE JEWS PRAY AT MACHPELA ?

The virtue of praying at the Patriarchs’ burial site is greatly stressed in the Midrash. Our sages teach that the Patriarchs, who were buried in this cave due to its special nature as the threshold to the Garden of Eden, are not dead but “sleeping.” They are the Midrashic “sleeping ones of Hebron,” who rise to beg mercy for their children throughout the generations. This link between the Patriarchs and prayer is expressed in our daily prayers as well: The first blessing of the Shemoneh Esreh [The Eighteen Blessings], our most important prayer, is called “Avot” [the Patriarchs]. From time immemorial, the Shemoneh Esreh has begun thrice daily with the words: “Blessed are You, O L-rd, our God and the God of our fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob... Blessed are You, Shield of Abraham.” Our sages further mention Calev ben Yefuneh, who was saved from the enticement of joining his fellow spies in their evil council by praying at the Patriarchs’ burial site (Sotah 35a).
Throughout the generations, Jews went up to pray at Ma'arat HaMachpela, even at the price of self-sacrifice and peril. Rambam, one of the our greatest sages of all times, established a yearly holiday for himself and his sons, the 6th of Cheshvan, commemorating the day he went up to pray on the Temple Mount, and another holiday on the 9th of Cheshvan, the day he merited to pray at Ma'arat HaMachpela. Likewise, numerous great sages of Israel have noted the powerful experience involved in visiting and praying at this site. Throughout the generations, Jews prayed within the edifice above the cave, even under the Byzantine and ancient Arab regimes. In 1267, the Muslim Mameluks forbade Jews and Christians to enter the compound. The Jews were forced to stand, humiliated, by the seventh step leading up to the edifice on the eastern side (3). The prohibition existed for seven hundred years, until 1967, when Hebron and Ma'arat HaMachpela were liberated. The Chief Chaplain of the Israeli army, the late Rabbi Shlomo Goren, was the first Jew to return to the site and to fly the Israeli flag there. Two years later, all the steps along the eastern wall, including “the seventh step,” were removed and destroyed, in an act symbolizing the blotting out of the humiliation and discrimination and the return of the children to their borders. The struggle for the rights of the Jewish People to pray at the Ma'ara has continued over the long years, during the course of which it has become permissible for Jews, following great efforts, to establish synagogues at the site, to place an ark and Torah scrolls, and to pray there as in former times. Yet there are still numerous limitations imposed upon Jews at the site, and we look forward to their full rights being reinstated.

PRAYER SAID AT THE CAVE OF THE PATRIARCHS IN HEBRON

Please KING, full of compassion. I have come today to the holy city of Chevron - may it be rebuilt and reestablished speedily in our days, Amen - where our Forefathers there Avraham, Yitzchak, and Ya'akov lived. Now I stand facing the Cave of the Patriarchs, where our Forefathers desired to be buried. Our Forefathers-there Avraham bought it for the full price, because he recognized its sanctity through Divine inspiration. - From here will begin the resurrection of the dead, when it will be Your will. Now I have come to this holy place to ask our King, our Creator, our Molder, King of kings, the Holy One, blessed is He, to have compassion on me and on all Your people Israel, wherever they may be. Remember the covenant You made with Avraham, YitZchak, and Ya'akov, and may the merit of our holy Mothers who are buried here protect us. Grant us atonement for our sins, wicked and rebellious acts, that we sinned, acted wickedly, and rebelled against You. Help us to return to You in complete repentance, so that our soul be worthy of resting with theirs in Paradise. Recall us with a recollection - of salvation and mercy from the highest Heavens. Incline Your ear and hear, open Your eyes and behold our desolates places and the city upon which Your Name is proclaimed. How long shall Your motility one be captivity, the one who glorifies You to the hand of the enemy? How long will You withhold compassion from Jerusalem? If not for our sake, do it for Your sake and that of Your invisible divine presence which is in captivity -with us its exile. have mercy on us for the sake of our holy Forefathers and Mothers. Our holy Sages and prophets have taught us that the destruction -of the First Temple caused a great com-motion in all the upper worlds, as it is written: The angels above cry out aloud; the angels of peace weep bitterly."

The Prophet Yirmeyahu, of blessed memory, visited the burial place of our holy Forefathers and, roaring like a lion, pro-claimed: "0 bones [of our] beloved, how can you lie still? Your children have been exiled and their Temples destroyed; where is the merit of our ancestorst" Then they all burst out in lamentations over the loss of the children; they whispered in a pleading voice before Him who dwells in the Heavens, "Were is the promise, 'I will remember for them the covenant with their ancestors'?" Our Forefather Avrham,may he rest in peace, cried and implored the presenace of God on High: "Was it in vain that I was tested with ten trials for their sake, for now I ook at their collapse!" And where is the promise, "Do not be afraid, Avraham! Yitzchak protested I loudly to the One Who dwells in the heavens, "Was it for nought that I was chosen -to be sacrificed? My descendants are being decimated, so where is the promise, 'And I will institute my covenant with Yitzchak'!"

Our Fore-father Yaakov, may he rest in peace, appealed before him Who is awe-inspiring in His acts, "My little ones, whom I nurtured and multiplied, how can I bear to see my disaster and the extermination - of my offspring" The faithful shepherd Moshel cried out on behaff of the nation that is not widowed: "The sheep that I affectionately tended, see how they are being sheared before their time! Leah, beating her breast, sobs bitterly; her sister Rachel weeps for her children. Zilpah slaps her face; Bilhah wails with both hands up-raised. The Holy One, blessed is He, answered them: "Return, perfect ones, to your resting place; I will surely fulfill all your requests. I was sent to Bavel for your sake; I will bring back your children -from exile." Indeed the Holy One, blessed is He, kept his promise that He would remember them after seventy years of Babylonian exile. We see that our forefathers made such an uproar over the babyblonlon exile that lasted only seventy years. What, then, can we say about the present bitter and impetuous exile of over 1900 years, during witch we have been shunted from one place to another, despised and humiliated, victims of innumerable harsh decrees! Who can weigh or count them Shall we not say that the mountains have coerced us, and that the hills have fallen upon us We shall lie down in our shame and be covered by our humiliation.

Forefathers of the world, beloved ones of the Most High, how can you rest in your graves, while we, children of the hopeful ones, are exhausted but allowed no rest? Entreat God, awaken, and rouse Moshe, the faithful shepherd, and his disciple - Yehoshua who gave us the Holy Land as a heritage, Although our ancestors' sins destroyed our Temples, and our transgressions have pro-longed the exile and caused good to be withheld from us, You Who are merciful in judgment, look upon Your people who are killed for the sake of Your holy Name and who sacrifice themselves for the unity of Your Name. Our Father in Heaven, remember us in this lengthy exile where, despite the severity of our distress, we have not forgotten the Name of our God. Neither have we ceased learning Your holy written and oral Torah and other holy books. Many of us learn and keep Your commandments with great difficulty and under oppression and persecution. We adhere as well to all the additions restrictions and decrees ordained by the earlier and later Rabbinical authorities. If we occasionally sin against You, You can surely ascertain that it is not done rebelliously, God for-bid. It is rather because of our inability to over-come the overpowering evil inclination in our weakened state, due to our exile and unbearable harassment.

"There is no righteous man on earth who does only good and does not sin." We are under compulsion, due to our affliction; we are like drunk, but not from wine. Look at our affliction, -for many are our sufferings and the sorrows of our hearts. Our honor has sunk low among the nations, and they despise us as the impurity of the unclean. How long will the wicked rejoice while Your children are treated with contempt? We therefore come before You, 0 Eternal, our God, submissively, humbly, and meekly, so that You remember unto us the merits of our holy Forefathers, -and bring an end to our exile. Hasten our salvation, expedite on our redemption, and bring the righteous redeemer, our Messiah. Then we shall all rejoice and serve You in joy and good spirits in our holy and glorious Temple. We shall then bring before You our obligatory offerings, and ascend and appear before You at our three pilgrimage seasons. As we have been privileged to come and see the burial place of our Forefathers, so may we merit seeing them alive, when all the deceased will awaken and sing - Moshe, Aharon, and all the righteous and pious among them, with our king at the head speedily in our days, Amen. So may it be Your will.

And may it be Your will, Eternal, our God and God of our Forefathers, to grant me a pure heart and to renew within me a spirit of correct- ness. Uncover my eyes, that I may observe the wonders of Your Torah, and worship You in reverence, love, and joy. Remove from me all stray thoughts and bad notions, so that they not distract me when I learn Your holy Torah, stand in prayer before You, or perform Your commandments. In-fuse my body with strength, and prevent my limbs from weakening. Remove all kinds of distress from me and from all Your people Israel, so that nothing -will prevent tile from learning Your Torah and serving You all the days that I will live on holy ground. I neighed my days and the days of names, and great them success in all their endeavors -I pledge (but do not vow) to supply oil. for the light such an amount for charity) for the spiritual exaltation of our patriarchs and matriarchs - who arc buried here, and for those of all the righteous and pious, in whose merit the Eternal might grant longevity to my children (names).

May they have children who are righteous and possess ail good traits, whose own children will all outlive them, and whom they will raise to Torah, marriage, and good deeds. Prepare for them fitting and appropriate marriage partners. May I be privileged to see them together during the ingathering -of the exiles and the complete redemption. speedily and soon, swiftly in our days, Amen May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing before You, Eternal, my Rock and my Redeemer.