Letter: T-S 8J20.12 + T-S NS 99.17

Description

Letter from Natan b. Yiṣḥaq ha-Sefaradi, in Jerusalem, to Shelomo b. David Ibn al-ʿArīshī, in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic, with the address written both in Hebrew and Arabic script. Dating: ca. 1050 CE. Gil identifies the sender as a Qaraite based on his use of the terms muʿallim, majlis (referring to the place of gathering and prayer for Qaraites), and his mention of the lesson of Abū l-Faraj b. Asad, i.e., the famous Qaraite scholar Yeshuʿa (Furqān) b. Yehuda. He conveys his longing for the addressee ("every time I go to the majlis and do not see you there, the world darkens for me") and that he prays for him always. He reports that he attended the lesson (nawba) of Abū l-Faraj b. Asad. He says, somewhat cryptically, "one time he paid her 2 dinars, and we witnessed this; another time he paid her half, and we witnessed this." He rejoiced at the news of the addressee's health, and he reports that the addressee's boys (ṣibyān) and girl (ṣabiyya) are all healthy. He goes on to bemoan his own wretched state this year due to the inflation of prices — a jar of water costs a quarter dirham — and difficulty of gaining a livelihood. He has been afflicted by regret (ולקד נדמת נדאמה אהל אל[...]) in this winter, "which has mired (me) in a mire never seen before" (alladhī awḥalat/awḥaltu waḥla mā ruʾiya [qaṭṭ]). Join: Alan Elbaum