One day the Kaiser was looking out the window when he noticed an elderly Jew with a long white beard passing by the jail. The Jew stopped and peered inside, beholding the pathetic figure of the captured monarch. The Kaiser was elated; it was the first time anyone had made eye contact with him in ages. "Come here!" he begged him in a whisper. The Jew walked over to the window. "Don't you recognize me? I am Kaiser Rudolph, King of Bohemia."
"If that is true, the Kaiser has changed greatly in appearance," the Jew replied, clearly skeptical. But the prisoner continued to insist that he was the King, and eventually convinced the Jew of his identity. The old Jew picked up his walking stick and began to beat at the window bars. After a few well-placed blows the bars were loosened. Making sure that no one was watching, the Kaiser climbed out the window and took his first breath of freedom. Quickly, he followed his rescuer back to his house.
The Kaiser wanted to slip over the border immediately and resume his throne, but the Jew demurred. "Your Majesty, it isn't fitting for a king to make a public entrance in such a reduced state. Surely your Majesty will want to bathe and improve his appearance before returning."
The Jew walked over to the closet and took out two small silver trays. On one was a set of hairbrushes, and on the other, a scissors and file for paring the nails. The Kaiser had tears in his eyes as he accepted them gratefully. "I will never forget your kindness," he declared from the bottom of his heart.
At that moment the Kaiser awoke from his dream, his heart pounding and covered in perspiration. A second later the perspiration turned to ice, as his eyes fell on the two small silver trays on the chest in his royal chamber. But there was no time for reflection, as a knock on the door heralded the entry of the King's valet. "Your Majesty, the royal barber is here to see you," he announced. "Let him wait," the Kaiser replied, too disturbed to even think about haircuts.
The Kaiser wondered if there was any connection between the previous day's events and his peculiar dream: The day before, a group of the King's closest confidants had approached him to voice their complaints about Rabbi Yehuda Lowy, the Maharal of Prague. Irritated by the great esteem in which he was held by Jew and non-Jew alike, they had demanded that something be done to punish the flourishing Jewish community of which he was head.
The anti-Semites had insisted that all the Jews be expelled from Prague, but their words had fallen on deaf ears. The Kaiser had heard much about the Maharal's wisdom, and was actually a secret admirer. In the King's opinion, none of the stories he'd been told about the Jews justified taking such a step.
Realizing that they were getting nowhere, the contingent had turned its attention to the Queen, a silly woman who was easily manipulated, and convinced her of the need to implement their plan. The Kaiser would now have to contend with a nagging wife.
The Queen's pleas were indeed insistent. That night, just before he had gone to sleep, the Queen had thrust the already prepared order of expulsion into her husband's hands. The King, wanting some peace and quiet, had promised to make his decision the following morning.
The King was very confused by the vivid dream, and decided that the only one who could explain it properly was the Maharal himself. A royal messenger and carriage were immediately dispatched to fetch the Rabbi.
The King was waiting expectantly when the Maharal arrived at the palace. "How is it that the Chief Rabbi of the Jews didn't recognize the Kaiser last night?" he demanded. The Maharal looked at him shrewdly. "Your Majesty," he explained, "don't forget that the Kaiser was changed greatly in appearance."
"So you're already aware of my dream!" the King said excitedly. "Can you also tell me what it means?"
The Maharal asked the Kaiser to send his servant for the order of expulsion on his night table. The Kaiser drew in his breath; he himself had already forgotten where he'd put the document. "If your Majesty will destroy this document, he will never again have such dreams," the Maharal promised.
From that day on the King of Bohemia and the Maharal enjoyed a cordial relationship. Needless to say, the enemies of the Jews were defeated, powerless in the face of the Kaiser's obvious admiration for the great Rabbi.
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