she cried, turning from him. "I am sick. Stop frightening me!" He could not sleep all night. He left the bed and began washing his hands and splashing water on the floor, while muttering prayers and humming. Toward dawn he stationed himself at the window and peered through the cracks in the shutters for sign of light. At the first hint of blue, he put on his clothes and left the house. Only then did Rechele sleep. Tormented by dreams, she saw her father lying in a field, empty-eyed and circled by a flock of vultures. Uncle Reb Zeydel Ber came to Rechele also. He was wearing a bloody shroud, and he waved a long butcher's knife in the air, and shouted angrily: "Your days are numbered! Descend, Rechele, descend into the dark grave!" She rose in the morning altered, as though by a mysterious disease, and it seemed to Rechele that the night had been longer than nights usually were. She could on no account remember what she had dreamed and what she had experienced. Her head was heavy; her hair hurt, as though it had been pulled; there were blue circles under her eyes, and her body was black and blue as though it had been pinched. Stiffly she walked to the oven and rubbed the flints together until the wick at last caught fire. Then she put a pot on the tripod, but so forgetful was she that the food burned. Reb Itche Mates returned from the study house at noon, wearing a kerchief around his loins and stooping as he carried a great prayer bag. Selecting some dry bread from the kneading trough, he washed his hands and wiped them on the tail of his kaftan. First he dipped the small piece of bread in salt, then shook off some of the salt and dipped the bread again--thus three times. Afterward he rubbed a clove of garlic into the crust. After the meal, he leaned his forehead on the corner of the table, and dozed for a quarter hour. Occasionally his shoulders would jerk. Suddenly he wrenched himself from sleep. There was a red mark on his forehead, and his eyes stared confusedly. Rechele spoke to him, but he seemed unaware of her presence, and did not respond. Presently he stood up, kissed the doorpost sign three times, and went off again--until evening.... When the seventh day of the Seven Days of the Marriage Feast was passed, Rechele was still a virgin. Young women who spoke of it in the shops pitied Rechele who, they said, had had "her head cut off with no knife." Everyone believed that sorcery had prevented the bride and groom from consummating their marriage. The fringes of Rechele's shawl were searched for knots, and the folds of her dress for hidden evidence of witchcraft. All the brooms were taken from her house and burned. The bridal bedding was smoked out and amulets were hung in every corner, to drive off evil spirits. Led separately to the bath, �Red Itche Mates was examined by the men for signs of maleness.... And the good-for-nothings who sat in the tavern making fun of law and order had found a nickname for Reb Itche Mates. They called him Gelding.
Reb Gedaliya
Some time before the Feast of Purim there arrived in Goray an emissary with amazing, if bewildering, news. Sabbatai Zevi--he related--having already, with God's help, been revealed as the Messiah, had departed for Stamboul to claim the crown of the Sultan who ruled the Land of Israel. Not through the might of hosts had Sabbatai Zevi conquered, but through the power of lords and prophets from the other side of the River Samation who accompanied him riding on the backs of elephants, leopards, and water oxen. Sabbatai Zevi himself (may his name be praised!) rode before them on a wild lion, wearing garments of purple and spun gold and numerous precious stones that shone in the darkness. A sash of pearls girdled his loins. His right hand clasped a scepter, and he was fragrant as the Garden of Eden. The sea parted before him, as it had in days of old for our Master Moses (peace be with him!), and he walked upon dry land in the midst of the waters, he and those that were with him. A pillar of fire went before him to show the way, and angels flew after him, singing hymns