Many years ago in the city of Rabat in Morocco there lived a great Rabbi who was also the mohel of the city. The Jews were not blessed with an abundance of worldly goods, but their greatest blessing lay in their many, lovely children who filled their homes with joy. Hardly a day passed without a bris, and the Rabbi was kept busy performing this holy mitzva.
After a time the Rabbi realized that he had not been called upon to perform a bris in many weeks. He couldn't understand why the Jewish women had ceased to give birth to boys, and he went to discuss the matter with the city elders.
They were also confounded by the drastic drop in the birth rate of the town, until one of them remarked that its seemed to have begun when the King granted a monopoly on fishing rights to the governor of the city. He had placed an exorbitant tax on fish, so that only the wealthiest could afford to purchase it. The Jews could no longer grace their Shabbat table with fish.
"Aha!" said the Rabbi, "That explains it. You see, it is a great mitzva to honor the Shabbat with fish, since the Creator blessed fish as He did people with the blessing 'Be fruitful and multiply.' Now, since the people can no longer afford fish, they have been deprived of this blessing."
The Rabbi had a plan. He went home and wrote out a few words on a parchment, and then instructed one of his students to take it to the seashore and drop it into the water exactly after sunrise.
The young man carried out the Rabbi's instructions, and the results were truly amazing. That day, when the fishermen went out, they were unable to catch even one fish! The same happened on the next day and the third.
The king, a great fish lover, quickly noticed the absence of fish and complained to the royal cook, who in turn replied that he had been unable to find fresh fish in any of the markets of the city. The angry king then sent for his governor and demanded an explanation. "I have given you a monopoly over the fish trade, and I cannot even get fish on my table! Have the fishermen stopped fishing, or have all the fish died!?"
The trembling governor had no explanation for the strange turn of events. He personally inspected the wharfs, but to no avail. The king gave an ultimatum: "In three days you had better come up with some fish or else I will have you thrown into the sea to find the fish yourself."
The terrified governor sent out all his informants to try to solve this puzzle, and sure enough, one returned with the story of a young Jew throwing something into the water.
The governor quickly returned to the king with the information that the Jews had bewitched the fish. The Rabbi was summoned and he addressed the king, saying, "Long live the King, Your Majesty. It is true I am responsible for the disappearance of the fish, but I did not cast any spell upon them. We Jews are strictly forbidden to use magic. I simply ordered the fish to leave these waters for the time being, and for a good reason.
"Your Majesty, G-d Who created the heaven and the earth filled them with many good resources for the benefit of man. He created air and water and made them readily available. The wind blows and the rains fall for the equal benefit of all G-d's creatures, and no man is able to capture them for his own use alone. G-d also created the fish of the sea. I am the spiritual leader of my people, and it has been my privilege to also serve as a mohel to circumcise the boys born into my congregation. In the past months I saw that no babies were being born, and I discovered that it was because the people are unable to purchase fish with which to honor our holy Shabbat."
"That is a strange thing to say," replied the king. "What could one thing possibly have to do with the other?"
The Rabbi explained: "You see, Your Majesty, G-d pronounced three blessings at the time of creation. One on the fish: 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters of the seas;' One on man: 'Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth, and have dominion over the fish of the sea...;' and on the Shabbat: 'And G-d blessed the Shabbat and made it holy.' So, that when we honor the Shabbat with fish, we are combining the three blessings, and G-d blesses our people with children who study his holy Torah."
The king now understood that because of his greedy governor poor people were unable to enjoy the bounty of the seas. He wasted no time in calling the governor and dismissing him from his high position.
The following morning at sunrise, all the townspeople assembled at the seaside to witness the wondrous return of the fish. Upon the arrival of the king, the Rabbi approached the water and called out: "Fish, hear my command! By the authority of the Creator and the authority of the Torah I order you to return at once and serve your Creator!" No sooner had he uttered these words than the calm sea began to ripple as wave upon wave of fish headed for the shore, jumping out of the water in excitement.
The crowd roared with happiness as the fishing boats raced out to sea to harvest the great bounty.
Adapted from The Storyteller.
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