Two Talmudic Stories of Cryptic Blessings and Their Interpretation (Moed Katan 9a-b)

Story # 1 - R’ Shimon ben Yoḥai; his son (Elazar); R’ Yonatan ben Asmai; R’ Yehuda ben gerim (son of converts); Story # 2 - R’ Shimon ben Ḥalafta; his father (Ḥalafta); and Rav

Moed Katan 9a (section #20) - 9b (section #9) - I added numbering where relevant:

Story # 1 - R’ Shimon ben Yoḥai; his son (Elazar); R’ Yonatan ben Asmai; R’ Yehuda ben gerim (son of converts)

Presumably, R’ Shimon ben Yoḥai’s son, not explicitly identified, is R' Elazar ben Shimon.

This story involves R’ Yonatan ben Asmai and R' Yehuda, students of R' Shimon ben Yoḥai, who take their leave from their teacher twice, once in the evening and again the next morning. They explain the technical reason why they twice took leave (I skip this section).

R' Shimon, recognizing their wisdom, sends his son to receive their blessing. His son finds them in an aggadic discussion (I skip this section). He asks for a blessing. Instead of a blessing, the son receives what seem to be curses, prompting confusion and distress upon returning to his father. R' Shimon then explains the cryptic nature of their words, revealing that each "curse" was indeed a blessing:

1. "You should sow and not reap" means his sons will live long lives, not dying prematurely.

2. "You should bring in and not take out" signifies that his sons' marriages will be enduring, without the tragedy of early widowhood.

3. "You should take out and not bring in" suggests his daughters will also enjoy stable marriages, without their husbands dying young.

4. Your house should be destroyed and your lodging place should be inhabited" is interpreted allegorically, wishing him a long life in this temporary world rather than an early afterlife.

5. "Your table should become confused" conveys a blessing of a lively household filled with many children.

6. "You should not see a new year" wishes for a lasting marriage, without the sorrow of losing a spouse and remarrying.

רבי יונתן בן עסמיי ורבי יהודה בן גרים תנו פרשת נדרים בי רבי שמעון בן יוחי, 

איפטור מיניה באורתא. 

לצפרא הדור וקא מפטרי מיניה. 

אמר להו: ולאו איפטריתו מיני באורתא? 

אמרו ליה: למדתנו רבינו תלמיד שנפטר מרבו ולן באותה העיר, צריך ליפטר ממנו פעם אחרת,

[...]

אמר ליה לבריה: בני אדם הללו אנשים של צורה הם, זיל גביהון דליברכוך. 

אזל, אשכחינהו דקא רמו קראי אהדדי

[...] 

אמרו ליה: מאי בעית הכא? 

אמר להו: דאמר לי אבא: זיל גבייהו דליברכוך. 

אמרו ליה: יהא רעוא 

1. דתזרע ולא תחצד, 

2. תעייל ולא תיפוק, 

3. תיפוק ולא תעייל, 

4. ליחרוב ביתך וליתוב אושפיזך, 

5. לבלבל פתורך, 

6. ולא תחזי שתא חדתא. 

כי אתא לגבי אבוה,

אמר ליה: לא מבעיא דברוכי לא בירכן, אבל צעורי צעורן. 

אמר ליה: מאי אמרו לך? 

הכי והכי אמרו לי. 

אמר ליה: הנך כולהו ברכתא נינהו. 

1. תזרע ולא תחצד: תוליד בנים, ולא ימותו. 

2. תעייל ולא תיפוק: תעייל כלתא, ולא לימותו בנך דליפקון. 

3. תיפוק ולא תעייל: תוליד בנתא, ולא ימותו גוברייהו וליהדרו לותיך. 

4. ליחרוב ביתך וליתוב אושפיזך — דהאי עלמא אושפיזך, וההיא עלמא ביתא [...]

5. לבלבל פתורך: בבני ובנתא. 

6. ולא תיחזי שתא חדתא: דלא תמות אתתך, ולא תנסב אינתתא אחריתי. 

R' Yonatan ben Asmai and R' Yehuda ben gerim (son of converts), studied the portion dealing with oaths in the study hall of R' Shimon ben Yoḥai. 

After completing their studies, the disciples took leave of their master in the evening, but did not yet leave the city. 

In the morning they went back and took leave of him a second time. He said to them: Did you not already take leave of me yesterday in the evening? 

They said to him: You have taught us, our teacher, that a disciple who takes leave of his teacher, and then stays overnight in the same city, must take leave of him an additional time

[...]

R' Shimon ben Yoḥai said to his son: These two people, R' Yonatan ben Asmai and R' Yehuda, son of converts, are men of noble form [tzura]¹ i.e., wise and learned individuals; go to them so that they will bless you. 

He went and found them deep in discussion, raising apparent contradictions between verses

[...]

When R' Yonatan ben Asmai and R' Yehuda, son of converts, noticed R' Shimon ben Yoḥai’s son, they said to him: What do you want here? 

He said to them: Father told me: Go to them so that they should bless you. 

They said to him as follows: May it be God’s will 

1. that you should sow and not reap, 

2. that you should bring in and not take out, 

3. that you should take out and not bring in, 

4. that your house should be destroyed and your lodging place should be inhabited, 

5. that your table should become confused,

6. and that you should not see a new year. 

When he came back to his father, he said to him: Not only did they not bless me, but they even caused me pain with their negative words. 

His father said to him: What exactly did they say to you? 

He answered: They said to me such and such. 

R' Shimon ben Yoḥai said to his son: These are all blessings, uttered in a cryptic manner, and this is what they meant: 

1. When they said that “you should sow and not reap”, they meant that you should bear sons and they should not die. 

2. Their statement that “you should bring in and not take out” means that you should bring in brides for your sons and your sons should not die, which would cause their wives to leave. 

3. When they said “you should take out and not bring in”, they meant that you should have daughters and their husbands should not die, which would cause your daughters to return to you. 

4. When they said that “your house should be destroyed and your lodging place should be inhabited”, this should be interpreted allegorically. As this world is compared to your lodging place, and the World-to-Come is compared to your house [...]

5. When they said that “your table should become confused”, they meant that you should be blessed with many sons and daughters, so that there will be noise and confusion at your table. 

6. When they said that “you should not see a new year”, they meant your wife should not die and as a result you should not have to marry another woman

Story # 2 - R’ Shimon ben Ḥalafta; his father (Ḥalafta); and Rav 

This story from the Talmud illustrates the significance of blessings, even when they might initially appear simple or insubstantial. R' Shimon ben Ḥalafta, upon his father's instruction, seeks a blessing from Rav. Rav blesses him with words that R' Shimon initially dismisses as "mere words" or insignificant: "May it be God’s will that you should not shame others and that you should not feel ashamed." Upon relaying this to his father, his father enlightens him that this blessing is profound, as it echoes the blessing given by God to Israel, as described in the Bible (I skipped this part). 

רבי שמעון בן חלפתא אפטר מיניה דרב, 

אמר ליה אבוה: זיל לגביה דליברכך. 

אמר ליה: יהא רעוא דלא תבייש ולא תתבייש. 

אתא גבי אבוה. 

אמר ליה: מאי אמר לך? 

אמר ליה: מילין בעלמא הוא דאמר לי. 

אמר ליה: ברכך ברכתא דברכן קודשא בריך הוא לישראל ותנא בה

[...]

Apropos a blessing with an obscure meaning, the Gemara relates: R' Shimon ben Ḥalafta took leave of Rav. 

His father said to him: Go to him so that he should bless you. 

When R' Shimon ben Ḥalafta returned to him for a blessing, Rav said to him: May it be God’s will that you should not shame others and that you should not feel ashamed. 

He came home to his father, who said to him: What did he say to you? 

He said to him: Mere words he said to me, i.e., he did not say anything of significance. 

After R' Shimon ben Ḥalafta repeated what Rav had said, his father said to him: He blessed you with the blessing with which the Holy One, Blessed be He, blessed Israel and then repeated the blessing, indicating that is a very great blessing [...]

1. This is the only phrase in this story that’s in Hebrew, not in Aramaic, indicating that it’s an existing fixed phrase:

בני אדם הללו אנשים של צורה הם