Pt1 R' Bena’a the Sage and Sleuth: Solving Two Mysteries and Rising to Judgeship (Bava Batra 58a)

A man left cryptic instructions before his death, bequeathing "a barrel of earth," "a barrel of bones," and "a barrel of wads of wool" to his sons

This is the first installment of a two-part series. The outline is below.

On the previous part of this sugya, which also features R' Bena’a as the protagonist, see my piece here.

For other stories of rabbis interpreting cryptic statements, see my pieces on R’ Shimon ben Yochai’s son; the sugya of יבוא ידיד; and Mordecai in the Temple. See also “"Clever Speech": Seven Talmudic Riddles, Rebuses, and Bilingual Wordplays (Eruvin 53b)“.

Outline

1. Story: A man left cryptic instructions before his death, bequeathing "a barrel of earth," "a barrel of bones," and "a barrel of wads of wool" to his sons

2. Two Riddles: R' Bena’a's Uncovering of the True Son, Imprisonment, and Ascent to Judgeship

   1. Pt1 - A man overheard his wife confess to her daughter that only one of her ten sons was fathered by him; R’ Bena’a’s discovery of the true son

   2. Pt2 - R’ Bena’a’s imprisonment, and his wife’s riddle

The Passage

Bava_Batra.58a.9-13

Story: A man left cryptic instructions before his death, bequeathing "a barrel of earth," "a barrel of bones," and "a barrel of wads of wool" to his sons

In this story, a dying man left cryptic instructions for dividing his possessions, telling his family to give "a jug¹ of earth" to one son, "a jug of bones" to another, and "a jug of wads of wool (אודרא)" to a third. 

His family was unsure of his intentions, so they consulted R' Bena’a. 

Through questioning, R' Bena’a learned the father had left land, livestock (חיותא), and rugs (בסתרקי). 

He then clarified that the father's strange terms likely referred metaphorically to these assets (meaning he intended to bequeath land to one son, livestock to the second, and quilts to the third).

ההוא דאמר להו: 

1. חביתא דעפרא לחד בראי, 

2. חביתא דגרמי לחד בראי, 

3. חביתא דאודרא לחד בראי. 

לא הוו ידעי מאי קאמר להו. 

אתו לקמיה דרבי בנאה, 

אמר להו: 

1. ״אית לכו ארעא?״ אמרו ליה: ״אין״. 

2. ״אית לכו חיותא?״ ״אין״.

3. ״אית לכו בסתרקי?״ ״אין״. 

״אי הכי, הכי קאמר לכו״.

The Gemara relates additional incidents involving R' Bena’a: 

There was a certain individual who said to his family before he died: 

1. A barrel of earth to one of my sons, 

2. a barrel of bones to one of my sons, 

3. and a barrel of wads of wool to one of my sons. 

They did not know what he was saying to them. 

They came before R' Bena’a for guidance. 

R' Bena’a said to them: 

1. Do you have land that your father left as an inheritance? They said to him: Yes. 

2. He asked: Do you have livestock that your father left as an inheritance? They said: Yes. 

3. He asked: Do you have quilts [bistarkei] that your father left as an inheritance? They said: Yes. 

He said to them: If so, this is what he said to you, i.e., he meant that he is bequeathing land to one son, livestock to the second, and quilts to the third.

1. חביתא - for a discussion on the mistranslation of this word as “barrel”, see my footnote in this piece.