286 Amo pezizo—“The impulsive people.” A rabbinic epithet for the Jews, based on a traditional commentary on the Israelites’ answer to Moses when making ready to receive the Law at Mount Sinai (Exodus, 24:7), “We will obey it and hear it”—for, as the rabbis pointed out, “We will [first] hear it and [then, if it suits us] obey it,” would have been the more prudent response. On the narrator’s use of Hebrew quotations, see this page — this page.
287 Oylom keminhogoy.
288 Bekharbi uvekashti—“Moreover, I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.” Genesis, 48:22.
289 Kidibo’ey—“As is proper.” A common Talmudic term.
290 Begapoy yovoy uvegapoy yeytsey.
291 Al tehi boz lekhoyl bosor—“Show disdain for no man”; a misquotation from The Ethics of the Fathers, which has odom instead of bosor. Although bosor also means “man,” its primary meaning is “flesh” or “meat,” which may be why the narrator associates it with garlic. In any case, though, he clearly does not know what he is saying.
292 Koyl yisro’el khaveyrim—“All Jews are brethren.” A rabbinic saying.
293 Hamibli eyn kvorim bemitsrayim—“And they said unto Moses, Are there not enough graves in Egypt that thou hast taken us to die in the wilderness?” Exodus, 14:11.
294 Tovar voborotye—Russian: “The merchandise is moving.”
295 Ulai yerakheym—“Perhaps He will have mercy.” There seems to be no traditional source for this quote.
296 Pshoyt neveyloh … ve’al titstoreykh—“[Better to] skin carcasses in the marketplace [for a living] rather than depend on others.” A Talmudic proverb.
297 Koyl dikhfin yeysey veyitzrokh.
298 Hekhiloysoh linpoyl … nofoyl tipoyl—“Then said his wise men and Zeresh his wife unto him [Haman], If Mordecai be of the seed of the Jews, before whom thou hast begun to fall, thou shalt not prevail against him, but thou shalt surely fall before him.” Esther, 6:13.
299 Tallis kotons.
300 Tomus nafshi im plishtim—“Let me die with the Philistines.” Judges, 16:30.
301 Purishkevitch.
302 A heder teacher — The heder was a schoolroom in which small children were taught beginning subjects, mostly religious ones.
303 The Torah reader — Reading the weekly portion of the Torah in the synagogue is a highly specialized task, as the reader must know by heart the chant notes, vocalization, and punctuation of the text, none of which appear in the Torah scroll itself.
304 Pravozshitelestvo, Gospodin Yevrei—Russian: “Your permit, Mr. Jew!”
305 Khorosho, Gospodin Obradchik—“All right, Mr. Cleric.”
306 Prayer group — Though any Jew can pray privately, ten male Jews (a minyan) are needed for public prayer to be held.
307 Deathday — On the Hebrew anniversary, the yortsayt, as it is called in Yiddish, of a family member’s death, a memorial candle is lit and the male survivors are expected to say the kaddish — which can only be recited in a minyan.
308 Girded his waist — Extremely pious Jews belt their jackets at the waist when they pray, in order to symbolically divide the upper or “spiritual” part of themselves from the lower or “animal” part.
309 Ashrey yoyshvey veysekho ….
310 On the eighth day — The day of life on which, barring illness, all Jewish male children are circumcised. The circumcision too must be performed in the presence of a minyan.
311 Sholem aleykhem—See this page — this page.
312 After the candles had been lit — The lighting and blessing of the Sabbath candles on Friday evening marks the onset of the day of rest.
313 Hallah — The braided bread that is blessed after the wine and the ritual washing of hands at the beginning of the Sabbath meal.
314 But it was the holy Sabbath — Among the many acts prohibited on the Sabbath are lighting and extinguishing a fire. Jewish law, of course, permits the Sabbath to be violated when human life is endangered, but to a sufficiently pious Jew the mere burning down of his house does not fall into that category. Furthermore, though a non-Jew is allowed to put out the fire, the Jew must not openly request him to do so, for that too would be a violation of the Sabbath laws.
315 Chvedka, serdtse—Russian: “dearest Chvedka.”
316 Never before … had he been without a hat.
317 Tefillin.
318 Kiddush wine — The wine, generally sweet, that is blessed at the beginning of Sabbath and holiday meals.