Abstract
The paper begins with a brief description of Sefer Ha-Yashar, a popular book on the one hand and enigmatic one on the other. The paper seeks to track the source of a story that was embedded in the Joseph and his brother's narrative, about the wolf that was accused to be the one who devoured Joseph but talked to Jacob, saying he had never eaten a human being, definitely not Joseph. This story appears not in Sefer Ha-Yashar only, but also in 'The Stories of the Prophets' by al-Kisāʾī and al-Tha‘labī. The idea of dialogue between man and animal is discussed as well as the assumed divine prohibition on animals not to eat man. More data is brought forward to enhance Arabic influence on Sefer Ha-Yashar, by drawing attention to another short story about Zulaykha who visits Joseph at prison. This argument comes with some Islamic art pieces. It is argued that Sefer Ha-Yashar was composed in Southern Italy around the year 1000.
| Translated title of the contribution | Sefer Ha-Yashar and One of its Sources: A Talking Wolf |
|---|---|
| Original language | Hebrew |
| Pages (from-to) | 165-180 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| Journal | מדע והשכל |
| Volume | א |
| State | Published - 2024 |
IHP Publications
- ihp
- Animals -- Religious aspects -- Judaism
- Bible
- Folklore
- Human-animal relationships
- Jacob -- (Biblical patriarch)
- Joseph -- (Son of Jacob)
- Wolves