{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Thinking Talmudist Podcast · Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe","title":"Ep 91 - Rabbi's Body Stayed FRESH for 22 Years in an Attic—You'll NEVER Guess Why! 😱 (Bava Metzia 84b)","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":3680,"description":"In this Friday Thinking Talmudist episode on Talmud Bava Metzia 84b, Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe explores the extraordinary life and legacy of Rebbe Elazar ben Rebbe Shimon, a sage whose body remained undecayed in his attic for 18–22 years after death due to his unparalleled righteousness—his vessel solely for Torah and mitzvot, not worldly indulgence. The Talmud recounts how his absence as community marshal prevented women from receiving halachic rulings on purity, halting procreation, echoing stories like Rav Moshe Feinstein's eight-year childless period without a mikvah. Rebbe Elazar's wife observed blood when hairs fell and a worm from his ear, which he explained in a dream as minor punishment for once failing to protest slander against Torah scholars, teaching the grave obligation to defend the righteous and halt lashon hara—worse for the listener who enables its spread than the speaker.The narrative highlights Rebbe Elazar's posthumous miracles: a heavenly voice from the attic resolved disputes, interpreted as divine inspiration guiding just settlements; his unburied body protected the city from wild animals; and a serpent guarded his father's cave until burial. Parallels include the Gaon of Vilna's perfectly preserved body and the Chafetz Chaim's gravesite preventing miscarriages, underscoring burial's sanctity over cremation, which denies body-soul reunion at resurrection. Rabbi Wolbe passionately advocates for tahara (purification rites) by the Chevra Kadisha as a profound mitzvah, preparing the deceased for heavenly judgment, and recommends Rabbi Doron Kornbluth's book Cremation or Burial? for spiritual and environmental insights.Ultimately, the Gemara contrasts Rebbe Elazar's humility and self-imposed suffering to spare Jewish pain with Rebbe Shimon ben Gamaliel's self-description as a \"lion son of a fox,\" proving true anavah (humility) among greats like the Bnei Beteira and Yonatan ben Shaul. Rabbi Wolbe ties this to defending Torah scholars amid Israel's...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/Gbqe0Cf40HNKSP59nsX531IzZFO5Zwyl1Fvnafqaxf4/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8yZTNi/NjlhNzEwYmFmNzEw/NDUwMjg0NDQ3OGIy/NDY5Yi5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}