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Text Excerpt
שיראי דמלכא! כפיתו תרין ארזי בחבלא, אסור חד כרעיה לחד ארזא וחד כרעיה לחד ארזא, ושרו לחבלא עד דאצטליק רישיה. אזל כל חד וחד וקם אדוכתיה ואצטליק ונפל בתרין.
the king’s silk garments. They tied two cedar trees together with a rope, and tied one of his legs to one cedar and one of his legs to the other cedar, and they released the rope until his head split open. Each tree went back and stood in its place and bar Haddaya split and fell completely split in two.
שאל בן דמא בן אחותו של רבי ישמעאל את רבי ישמעאל: ראיתי שני לחיי שנשרו. אמר: שני גדודי רומי יעצו עליך רעה, ומתו.
The Talmud relates a story with regard to a Sage who interpreted dreams, R' Yishmael. Ben Dama, son of R' Yishmael’s sister, asked his uncle, R' Yishmael: I saw in a dream that my two cheeks fell off. What does my dream mean? R' Yishmael said to him: Two Roman battalions spoke ill of you, and they died. Cheeks symbolize a mouth that speaks evil.
אמר ליה בר קפרא לרבי: ראיתי חוטמי שנשר. אמר ליה: חרון אף נסתלק ממך. אמר ליה: ראיתי שני ידי שנחתכו. אמר ליה: לא תצטרך למעשה ידיך. אמר ליה: ראיתי שתי רגלי שנקטעו. אמר ליה: על סוס אתה רוכב. חזאי דאמרי לי באדר מיתת וניסן לא חזית. אמר ליה: באדרותא מיתת ולא אתית לידי נסיון.
Similarly, the Talmud relates: Bar Kappara said to R' Yehuda HaNasi: I saw in a dream that my nose fell off. What does my dream mean? He said to him: This is an allusion that anger [ḥaron af] that had been directed against you has been removed from you. Bar Kappara said to him: I saw in a dream that my two hands were cut off. R' said to him: This dream means that you will not require the labor of your hands, as you will be rich and you will have considerable means without effort. Bar Kappara said to him: I saw my two legs were cut off. R' Yehuda HaNasi said: You are riding a horse. He said to him: I saw that they were saying to me that in the month of Adar I will die and I will not see Nisan. He said to him: You will die in glory [adruta] and you will not be brought to temptation [nissayon].