MASADA

MY ISRAEL:

MASADA:

The site where one of the most dramatic & symbolic acts in Jewish history occurred. Located on the western shore of the Dead Sea, on the summit of what in geological terms known as a horst. The summit covers an area of 80 dunam (80 000 square meters = 19.7 acres) and sits 450 meters above the Dead Sea.

It is here were Jewish rebels under the leadership of Eleazar ben Yair held out for 3 years (70 C.E. - 73 C.E.), against the Roman 10th legion commanded by Flavius Silva. Once it became evident that the Romans would succeed in capturing the fortress, 960 Jewish inhabitants made up of men, woman & children took their own lives rather than subject themselves to Roman captivity. According to Josephus, the Romano-Jewish historian who recorded the event, the only Jews who remained alive were two women and five children who had hidden in a cistern.

Initially built by the Hasmoneans (167 B.C.E – 63 D.C.E.) & later transformed into a palace/fortress by Herod (37 B.C.E.-4 B.C.E.), the site is home to a treasure trove of the most superb archaeological remains from the Herodian period as well as a chapel from the Byzantine period (324 C.E. – 640 C.E.).

At the base of the site are remnants of a surrounding wall, 8 Roman encampments & a siege ramp, all of which built by Jewish slave labor. The cliffs house a sophisticated system of canals that direct water from the nearby wadis to water cisterns carved into the rock face. A wadi is a dry riverbed that only contains water during the rainy season. Remains on the summit include a casement wall that circumvents the area as well as palaces, a bathhouse, living quarters, storerooms, a synagogue, columbaria, cisterns & mikvaot. (Jewish ritual baths). Archaeological finds other than building remains comprised of pottery, weapons, coins, scroll fragments & ostraca, which are fragments of pottery containing an inscription.

Yigael Yadin, both a soldier & archaeologist, was in charge of the excavations on Masada from 1963 to 1965. Volumes have been written about this site. Consequently I’ve decided to focus my efforts on an answer given by Yigael Yadin when asked the following question.

“What was for you the most dramatic find of the whole dig?”

Prior to addressing the question allow me to quote Josephus who as mentioned previously wrote about the siege. “They then chose ten men by lot out of them, to slay all the rest; everyone of whom laid himself down by his wife and children on the ground, and threw his arms about them and they offered their necks to the stroke of those who by lot executed that melancholy office; and when these ten had, without fear, slain them all, they made the same rule for casting lots for themselves, that he who’s lot it was to first kill the other nine, and after all, should kill himself”.

In answer to the question, Yigael Yadin referred to eleven small ostraca, which differed from other ostraca unearthed on site. Upon each was inscribed a single & different name, though all appeared to be written by the same hand. Whether these were the ostraca for casting lots is uncertain, but one bearing the name Ben Yair could have referred to non-other than Eleazer ben Yair, the leader of the revolt.

Jewish law states that all commandments may be broken in order to save a life with the exception of murder, which includes suicide, idolatry & sexual misconduct, such as incest, adultery & bestiality. The question arises on whether suicide under the conditions faced by the Jews of Masada is permissible or not?

I have consulted with a member of the Hassidic community & a member of a non-Hassidic community, both of whom have impeccable credentials. From my discussions & correspondence with them, I arrived at the following conclusion. There appears to be consensus that suicide is permissible, if the probable outcome of a Jew captured by an enemy will lead to his/her brutal torture & death. The precedent for this is King Saul & his son Jonathan. Both the Hassidic & non-Hasidic groups concur that the slaying of men, woman & children by other men is contentious, and there are arguments for and against this action. Also debatable is the slaying of children by their mothers to avoid them being brought up as non-Jews. This occurred in York (England) in 1190 when Anti-Semitic feeling was running high throughout Western Europe in the twelfth century, stoked by the Christian fervor of the Crusades. This action culminated in the massacre of an estimated 150 Jews – the entire Jewish community of York. In whatever way one may perceive the actions taken by the Jews of Masada, it remains to this day, a symbol of courage in the pursuit of freedom.

Ron Traub (Tour Guide & Architect). Website: rontraub-tours.com Photo’s: Rimonah Traub.