Shabbos 26
“A mother-in-law who hated her daughter-in-law said to her: Go adorn yourself with balsam oil. She went and adorned herself. When she came, her mother-in-law said to her: Go light the lamp. She went and lit the lamp. She caught fire and was burned.”
Today’s reading continues the discussion of oils that are appropriate to light the Sabbath lamp. The attributes of balsam oil are considered, and we are told that it is so fragrant that one might be tempted to dip his finger into the lamp in order to perfume himself and violate the Sabbath. Alternatively, we are told that the oil is flammable. We are offered a horrible story: a mother-in-law who hated her husband’s wife suggests that she adorn herself with balsam oil. She then requests that a lamp be lit, which causes her daughter-in-law to be burned.
Let’s imagine how the scene unfolded: The Mother-in-Law – let’s call her Yael -- never felt her daughter-in-law – let’s call her Naomi -- was good enough for her oldest son – let’s call him Daniel. Yael felt that Naomi was languid and not attentive enough to her home. Naomi was a dreamer and had a tendency to lose herself in imaging what her life would be like if she lived somewhere more exciting than her small town.
One day when Daniel is at work, Yael suggests that Naomi get dressed for a walk into town and apply some balsam oil for the occasion. Sweet-natured Naomi is so taken with the balsam scent that she goes a bit overboard with its application and rubs it thoroughly into her arms and hands and puts some in her hair. When she appears before Yael, she is asked to light a lamp so that her mother-in-law can observe her grooming a little better. And then POOF – when the lamp is lit Naomi is badly burned and emits a painful scream. Naomi survives the ordeal but is badly burned and spends her life hiding inside her home no longer dreaming of the world outside.
The tale of the imaginary Yael and Naomi reminds us of how difficult a woman’s life could be at the time the Talmud was written, when she was at the mercy of her husband and his family. These women must have had dreams of what their lives could be if they lived elsewhere and who they could be if they were not so tethered to tradition and subservience to the families they married into.
Today’s reading led me to research the history of Balsam in ancient Israel. It was so highly prized during the period of the Second Temple that one article said it constituted the second largest industry in Israel. It was used as incense in the Temple and created the base for cosmetics and certain medicines. I found a few articles from a number of years ago indicating that efforts were underway to cultivate the extinct plan in the garden of Kibbutz Ein Gedi, which at one time was the center of production of the expensive and highly valued balsam resin.