Stories from the Midrash: King Solomon and the Locked Temple – Oser Hamedrashim
Like Islamic narratives, Jewish literature is replete with stories about the king-prophet Solomon, son of David, especially the miraculous stories that describe the greatness of his power and the vastness of his wealth, as well as his ability to harness the forces of nature and the world, and to communicate with all beings, both those apparent to mankind and those hidden. The Midrash that I present here may not be unique among the literature that deals with the stories of Solomon, but it combines most of the elements that we find in the various narratives. After reaching the end of the story of the ant, which I previously presented my translation of (see: The Story of King Solomon and the Ant ), Solomon continued his epic journey, riding the wind for days, until he saw a huge golden temple that was unparalleled, and he descended to it, wanting to enter it. Here we encounter all the familiar elements of the stories of Solomon; he speaks with the prince of demons, with the “prince of birds,” and then with a whole family of long-lived vultures. When he finally manages to enter the guarded palace, he engages in a lightning battle with the demons that ends with his victory and the revelation of the secret of the Temple. Here is my translation into Arabic of this story from the Midrash “The Story of the Ant and the Sealed Temple” from the book “Oser Hamedrashim”:
(36) And the wind passed away, and he [Solomon] ascended to the heights between heaven and earth, and remained there ten days and ten nights. And one day he saw a high temple built of pure gold. (37) Solomon said to the princes, “I have never seen such a temple in the world!” (38) At that hour Solomon said to the wind, “Come down with us!” (39) And the wind came down to the earth, and Solomon went and his servant Asaph the son of Barachiah, [ 1 ] and they walked and promenaded together around the temple, and the grass in it smelled like the smell of the garden of Eden. They did not find an entrance [to the temple] by which to enter, and they wondered at this matter, and asked how they could enter it. (40) And while they were busy with the matter, the prince of the demons came to the king and said to him, “My lord, why are you so anxious?” (41) Solomon said, “I am anxious because of this temple that has no entrance, and I do not know what to do.” (42) The prince of the demons said: “My lord the king, now command the demons to go up to the top of the temple, perhaps they will find there something, a man, a bird, or some creature.” (43) At that hour he called the demons and said: “Hurry up and go up to the top of the roof and see if you find anything.” (44) They went and went up, then came down and said: “Our lord, we did not see any man there at all, but [we saw] a large bird called ‘Eagle’ sitting on its chicks.” (45) At that hour [Solomon] called the prince of the birds and said to him: “Go and bring me the eagle.” (46) “Kaser” went [ 2 ]And the eagle was brought to King Solomon, peace be upon him. [The eagle] opened its mouth in praise and praised the King of kings of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He, and then greeted King Solomon. (47) Solomon said to him, “What is your name?” (48) He said to him, “Elanad.” (49) He said to him, “How old are you?” (50) He said to him, “Seven hundred years old.” (51) He said to him, “Have you seen or known or heard of an entrance to this temple?” (52) He said to him, “My lord, by your life and by the life of your head, I have not known [such a thing]. But I have a brother who is two hundred years older than me, he knows and explains, and he sits on the second floor.” (53) Solomon said to Keser, “Take this eagle to his place and bring me his older brother.” (54) [So he] rose until no eye could see him. After an hour he returned to Solomon with an eagle larger than the first. The eagle sang and praised its Creator, then greeted King Solomon and stood before him. Solomon said to him, “What is your name?” (55) He said to him, “Eloph.” (56) He said to him, “How many days do you live?” (57) He said to him, “Nine hundred years.” (58) He said to him, “Have you known or heard of an entrance to this temple?” (59) He said to him, “My lord, as you live and as your head lives, I do not know, but I have a brother who is four hundred years older than me, and he knows and explains, and he sits on the third floor.” (60) Solomon said to the prince of birds, “Take this man and bring me his older brother.” (61) So he took him [and they rose until] no eye could see them. After an hour the great eagle came, and he was very old and could not fly. They lifted him up on their wings and brought him before Solomon. He praised and glorified his Creator and then greeted the king. (62) Solomon said to him, “What is your name?” (63) He said to him, “Eltamor.” (64) He said, “How old are you?” (65) He said to him, “One thousand three hundred years old.” (66) He said to him, “Have you known or heard of an entrance to this temple?” (67) He said to him, “Sir, as you live I do not know, but my father told me of an entrance on the west side, and it has been covered with dust from the many years that have passed. If you wish, tell the wind to blow the dust away from around the house and the entrance will be revealed.” (68) Solomon commanded the wind to blow and sweep away the dust from around the house, and the entrance was revealed. It was very large, and its gates were made of iron, and they looked as if they had been burned and worn out from the passage of time. They saw a lock on the gate, on which was written: “Know, O sons of Adam, that we have lived in this temple [and enjoyed] good things and pleasures for many years. When the famine came, we ground pearls instead of wheat, and that did not benefit us, so we left this house to the vultures and slept in the ground. Then we said to the vultures: Tell everyone who asks you about this temple, ‘We found it built.’” (69) It was also written: “No one shall enter this house unless he is a prophet or a king. If he wishes to enter, let him dig to the right of the entrance until he finds a glass box, and let him break it to find the keys.” (70) So Solomon opened the gate, and found a door of gold, so he opened it and entered. He found a second door, opened it and entered. He found a third door, opened it and entered. Then he saw a very large building in which there was a pool made of rubies, emeralds and jewels, and he saw in it a dome in which all kinds of jewels were piled. He also saw a number of rooms and two luxurious courtyards paved with bricks, one of silver and the other of gold. Then he looked at the ground and saw the image of a scorpion, and the scorpion was of silver. [He also] found an underground house, and when he opened it he found in it many jewels that could not be counted, and a lot of gold and silver. Then he found another entrance with a lock on it, and written on the gate:“The lord of this temple was so glorious and great that the lions and bears feared his kingdom and praised him. He dwelt in this temple [enjoying] good things and pleasures, and reigned and sat on his throne. But the hour of his death came before his time, and he died and the crown fell from his head. Enter the temple and see wonders.” (71) Then [Solomon] opened the gate and entered, and saw a third gate on which was written that they had dwelt [here] in great glory and wealth, and the wealth remained while they died and perished, and the calamities of time passed over them, and they had no foot on the earth. Then he opened the gate and found a heap of rubies and emeralds on which was written: “How I have labored! How I have eaten! How I have drunk and how I have worn fine clothes! How I have feared and how I have been afraid!” (72) Then [Solomon] went on and found a magnificent house of rubies and emeralds, with three entrances. On the first entrance was written: “O son of Adam, do not be deceived by time! You will perish and pass away and move from your place to live under the earth.” On the second entrance was written: “Do not hurry, take your time, for the world does not last for anyone.” On the third entrance was written: “Take provisions for the journey, and prepare your tomorrow’s food today, for you will not remain on the earth, and you do not know the day of your death.” (73) [Solomon] opened the gate and entered, and saw an idol sitting, which one who saw it would think was alive, and he went towards the idol and approached it. (74) The idol trembled and cried out in a loud voice: “Come, you sons of devils, and see, for Solomon has come to destroy you!” (75) And fire and smoke were issuing from its nostrils. At that hour there was a great and bitter cry among them, and they trembled and trembled. Then Solomon cried out to them and said, “Do you frighten me? Do you not know that I am Solomon, the king over all the wilderness, whom the Holy One, blessed be He, has created? And I have come to make you taste all kinds of torments, and you rebel against me!” (76) Then he read to them the name of [God]. At that hour they were all silent, and none of them could speak. Then the idols fell on their faces. As for the sons of demons, they fled and threw themselves into the great sea.(76) Then he recited to them the explicit name of [God]. At that moment they were all silent and none of them was able to speak. Then the idols fell on their faces. As for the sons of devils, they fled and threw themselves into the great sea.(76) Then he recited to them the explicit name of [God]. At that moment they were all silent and none of them was able to speak. Then the idols fell on their faces. As for the sons of devils, they fled and threw themselves into the great sea.[ 3 ] So that they would not fall into the hand of Solomon. (77) Solomon approached the idol, and took a silver tablet and a chain from its neck. On the tablet were written all that pertained to the temple, but [Solomon] did not know how to read it. He was very sad and said to his princes: “Do you not know that I have come a long way and reached the idol and approached it and took the tablet, but I do not know what is written on it?” (78) [Then] he looked [at their faces] and said: “What shall I do?” (79) And suddenly he saw a young man coming from the desert, and he came to Solomon and bowed down before him and said to him: “What is the matter with you, King Solomon? [Why] are you sad?” (80) He said to him: “I am sad because of this tablet, for I do not know what is written on it.” (81) The young man said: “Bring [the tablet] and I will read it to you, for I was sitting in my place when God, blessed be He, saw you sad, and sent me to read you the book.” (82) So [Solomon] placed the tablet in the hand of [the young man] who contemplated it in astonishment for a whole hour, then he wept and said: “Woe to me, Solomon! This is a book in the Greek language that says: ‘I am Shaddad, son of Ad, [ 4 ] I ruled over a million cities, and I rode a million horses, and a million kings were under my hand, and I killed a million giants, and when the angel of death came to me I could not overcome him.’” It is also written: “Everyone who reads this book should not occupy himself too much in this world, for death is the end of every person, and nothing remains for a person except his good name.” (83) This is what happened to Solomon in this world. (84) And the mention of all the righteous is a blessing. Let this be His pleasure. Amen. (85) Done.
This is how it is pronounced and written: Asf Ben Barkiho.
︎Although the text calls the prince of birds “eagle” at the beginning, it makes him “breaker” (in Hebrew, פרס, meaning breaker) from this point on.
︎The Great Sea (in Hebrew, Hayam HaGedol): the Mediterranean Sea
︎Shaddad bin Aad: A legendary king whose name is associated with the construction of the city of “Iram of the Pillars” mentioned in the Qur’an.
︎Omar Hekmat El-Kholi
Source: websites