Miriam the Prophetess

Miriam the Prophetess Yahrzeit - 10 Nissan There is a tradition that Shabbat HaGadol once fell on the 10th of Nissan. But since this day is also the day of the passing (hilula) of Miriam the Prophetess, the Sages decided not to tie Shabbat HaGadol to the 10th of Nissan, and instead established it as the Shabbat before Pesach. There were 7 prophetesses among the people of Israel: Sarah, Miriam, Devorah, Chanah, Avigail, Chuldah, and Esther. (Megillah 14a) Miriam lived 86 years before the Exodus from Egypt. (Meor Ayin) Why was she called Miriam? Because of the bitterness (mar) of Egypt. (Seder Olam Rabbah 3) She was called Miriam because from the time of her birth the Egyptians began to make the lives of the Children of Israel bitter. (Yalkut Shimoni, Shemot 165) The Hebrew midwives were (Exodus 1:15) Yocheved and [her daughter] Miriam. Miriam, who was only five years old, went with Yocheved to help her. She was quick to honor her mother and to serve Ha-Shem. (Etz Yosef) Her second name was Puah, because she would give the newborns wine and bring babies back to life when they were born apparently lifeless. She stood before Pharaoh and declared to him: "Woe to this man (i.e., Pharaoh), when G-d punishes him." Pharaoh was furious and wanted to kill her, but Yocheved appeared before him and said: "Will you pay attention to her? She is just a child, she doesn't understand." (Shemot Rabbah 1:13) The wisdom of Betzalel was in the merit of Miriam. Miriam received wisdom. She gave birth to Betzalel, and from her descends David. (Shemot Rabbah 48:4) Before Moshe was born, she was a prophetess. After Moshe was born, the gift of prophecy was taken from her and given to Moshe. (Midrash Aggadah, Shemot 15:20) She prophesied and said: "My mother is destined to give birth to a son who will save Israel." (Megillah 14a) Miriam taught the women. (Targum Michah 6:4) Thanks to Miriam, Israel found a well in the desert. (Taanit 9a) Whenever Israel set out on their journey, they would not depart until Miriam walked before them; thus they all stopped when Miriam became afflicted with tzaraat. (Yalkut Shimoni, Ki Teitzei 937) Ephrat (Chronicles I) is Miriam. Why was she called this? Because a multitude of women followed after her with cymbals and dancing. (Exodus 15:20) (Shemot Rabbah 1:17) Caleb the son of Chetzron had children with Azubah, his wife, and Yeriot. (Chronicles I) Azubah is Miriam, whom young men abandoned and would not marry because she was ill. (Rashi) She is also called Yeriot (lit. "curtains"), because her face was as white as a curtain, so ill was she. (Rashi) The two wives, Chelah and Naarah. (Chronicles I) Miriam was like two women: first she was Chelah (sick), and then she became Naarah (a young girl). Azubah died and Caleb married Ephrat. (Chronicles I 2:18) Miriam, who was called Azubah and Ephrat, became afflicted with tzaraat, and was treated as if she were dead. Caleb also left her. After her recovery he married her again and seated her in a palanquin for the wedding procession with great joy. Then G-d restored her youth, and she bore him children. (Shemot Rabbah 1:17)   Her family Amram acted on his daughter's advice. When Pharaoh decreed: "Every son that is born shall be cast into the Nile" (Exodus 1:22), he arose and divorced his wife, and all of Israel followed his example. "Father," said his daughter, "your decree is more severe than Pharaoh's. Pharaoh's decree is directed against the males, but yours, which prevents the birth of both daughters and sons, is directed against males and females alike." (Sotah 12a) Miriam was six years old when her father, hearing her words, brought her before the Sanhedrin. They said to him: "Amram, it is you who forbids marriages, and it is you who must permit them." "What do you propose?" asked Amram, "Should we marry again?" They answered: "Then who will make this known to Israel?" (Pesikta Rabbati 43:27) Amram took his wife back and seated her in a palanquin for the wedding. Aaron and Miriam sang and danced before her, joyful that the savior of Israel would be born to their mother when she married their father. (Maharsha) (Sotah 12a; Bava Kamma 120a). Why did Miriam stand at a distance to see what would happen to the infant Moshe? Because she had prophesied: "My mother will give birth to a son who will free Israel." When the infant was placed in the Nile, her mother struck her on the hand and said: "My daughter, where is your prophecy?" (Shemot Rabbah 1:22). When Moshe was born, the whole house was filled with light. Her father kissed her hand and said: "My daughter, your prophecy has come true," (Megillah 14a)   Miriam's Well The Talmud teaches that the 40 years of the Jewish people's wandering in the desert were accompanied by 3 gifts in the merit of 3 tzadikim: in the merit of Moshe, the Manna was given; in the merit of Aaron, the Clouds of Glory; in the merit of Miriam, they were accompanied by a Well of water. But after Miriam's death, the well of water disappeared. Chazal taught that although the Well disappeared, it did not vanish forever - it hid itself in the waters of the Kinneret and possesses unique properties. There is a well-known story about Rabbi Chaim Vital connected with Miriam's Well: "When I [first] came to my teacher of holy memory (the Arizal) to study this wisdom (Kabbalah) under his guidance, he was about to travel to Tiberias. He took me with him. We got into a boat, and as we sailed [across the Kinneret] at a point opposite the arches of the Old Synagogue of Tiberias, my teacher dipped a cup into the water and gave it to me to drink. He told me that now I would be able to grasp this wisdom [the teaching of Kabbalah], because I had just drunk water from the well of Miriam [which is located in the Kinneret]. From then on I began to penetrate the depths of this wisdom." Besides wisdom, this water also possesses healing properties. Midrash Vayikra Rabbah (22:4) states that once a person who immersed in Miriam's Well was healed. Today, as the Mekubalim teach, Miriam's Well can be seen if one climbs up to the Kever of the Imahot (Matriarchs) in Tiberias and looks out over the Kinneret - in the middle of the lake, there is a place that looks like a sieve, and that is Miriam's Well. In addition, this water has healing properties. The Midrash (Vayikra Rabbah 22:2 and elsewhere) records several actual cases of such healing, in particular from blindness and tzaraat. Rabbi Chiya bar Abba said: "It is written about this: '...that the well is visible over the wilderness of Yeshimon.' For those who climb Mount Yeshimon (northeast of the Dead Sea), there is a chance to see something like a small sieve in the Sea of Galilee - and that is the well of Miriam." Rabbi Chaim Vital, the disciple of the Arizal, gives a more precise location for Miriam's well: "When you walk along the shore of the Sea of Tiberias toward the hot springs of Tiberias, at the very midpoint of the way, in a place where there are many palm trees on the shore, parallel to the tower that stands atop the mountain - there Miriam's well will be found." Segula There is a segula to draw water from wells and springs at the conclusion of Shabbat. At this time, Miriam's Well, as it were, "makes its rounds" of all the bodies of water, and there is a chance to merit drinking this water and being healed of all ailments. (Rema on Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 299:10) May the merit of Miriam the Prophetess protect our entire people! (https://dailyzohar.com/tzadikim/190-Miriam-the-Prophetess)