Spiritual Significance
During our nation’s long, painful journey through history, the holy resting places of our righteous forbearers have served as spiritual oases. The resting place of our Patriarchs and Matriarchs, the founders of our nation, has been a place where Jews have gone to pray from the earliest of times.
In the earliest instance, the Torah tells us that Caleb, one of the twelve scouts that Moses sent to reconnoiter the Land of Canaan, made a personal detour to Hebron. The Talmud tells that he wished to pray at the cave where Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebecca, Jacob and Leah are buried. He beseeched the Patriarchs and Matriarchs to intercede with G-d to have mercy on his soul and save him from succumbing to the evil plot hatched by the other spies.
This is a model that we follow to this day when we visit the resting places of holy people to invoke G-d’s mercy in times of trouble.
The Zohar relates, that the Cave of Machpelah is special not by virtue of those who rest there, but because it is the gateway to the Garden of Eden. Adam, the first man, recognized the uniqueness of the location when he saw a ray of light emanating from the area. He therefore dug the cave as a burial place for himself and his wife. After Adam and Eve were buried there, the light was hidden.
Years later, Abraham uncovered the secret once again when he mistakenly stumbled upon the cave (see Interesting Facts, for the full story). He decided he wanted to be buried there too, at the gateway to the Garden of Eden.
Our prayers today, especially at this holy place, the gateway to the world of souls, can arouse our fathers and mothers to pray once again on our behalf.
Basic History
As recounted in Genesis, Abraham purchased the cave and the surrounding field as a burial place for his wife, Sarah, making it the first plot of land in the Holy Land to become the legal possession of the Jewish people. This took place in 1677 BCE.
Abraham, when he died, was buried there too, and so were Isaac and his wife, Rebecca. Leah was buried there, and before Jacob died in Egypt, in 1523 BCE, he made Joseph promise that he would carry him out of Egypt and bury him with his fathers in the Cave of Machpela. And indeed, they made a special journey to do so.
194 years later, a year after the Jews left Egypt, Caleb became the first recorded Jew to make the journey to their resting place and pray (see Spiritual Significance). He was followed by countless others throughout the ages.
The large imposing stone building that stands today above the cave was built by Herod in the 1st century BCE. (In fact, this building, with 6-foot thick stone walls, is the only fully intact Herodian structure.)
The cave wherein lie our Patriarchs and Matriarchs is beneath this structure. Around the 1490s, access to the cave was closed, and remains closed to this very day.
As descendants of Abraham's son Ishmael, the Arabs also revere the site of Abraham’s tomb. It is unknown exactly when they first built a mosque within the Herodian walls. The complex was taken over by Crusaders in 1100, but less than a hundred years later, it was converted back into a mosque.
In the late 14th century, the Muslim rulers forbade Jews from entering the site, but they were allowed to approach as close as the 5th step on a staircase at the southeast. At some point this was changed to the 7th step.
There has been a Jewish community in Hebron for centuries. Throughout the generations, Jews would pray at the Cave of Machpelah, even if they could only go to the 7th step. This ancient Jewish community was destroyed in the massacre of 1929 when Arabs stormed the Jewish Quarter and murdered many Jews. The British government then forced all the survivors to leave the city.
After the Six Day War, the area came back under Israeli control and the restriction limiting Jews to the 7th step was finally lifted. Jews moved back to Hebron, and a synagogue was re-established at the Cave of our Patriarchs.
Today
In 1995, the Wye River Accords gave the waqf (a Muslim administrative body) control of most of the Cave of Machpelah, including the whole southeastern section, which contains the cenotaphs (monuments) of Isaac and Rebecca (“Ohel Yitzchak”). This is also the area that contains the only known entrance to the Cave, and which possibly lies directly over the Cave itself. Jews pray in the other sections of the building most of the year, and are only allowed to visit Ohel Yitzchak ten days a year. One of these is the Shabbat of Chayei Sarah, when we read the Torah portion that describes Abraham’s purchase of the Cave. Tens of thousands of visitors converge in Hebron during this weekend to experience this Shabbat together.
The Cave of Machpelah is open to tourists and visitors every day. Many Egged buses (equipped with bulletproof windows) travel every day from all of Israel’s major cities to Kiryat Arba, the adjoining Jewish community. Some continue on to the Jewish area of Hebron and the Cave of Machpelah. If you wish to walk from Kiryat Arba to Hebron, it is advisable to do so only with an armed guard.
A Shabbat stay in Hebron, or the adjoining Jewish community of Kiryat Arba, is a really uplifting and beautiful experience. The Friday night prayers in the synagogue at the Cave of Machpelah are hauntingly beautiful. Spending time at this holiest of venues amongst all different types of Jews is truly inspiring. If you need Shabbat accommodations, or if you are in need of any sort of assistance while in Hebron, be sure to contact Rabbi Danny and Batsheva Cohen, the warm couple that direct Chabad operations in this holy city. Click here to contact them.
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