Abba Chilkiya and Chanan HaNechba

Abba Chilkiya was known for his great righteousness and honesty. To earn a living, he worked as a day laborer in the fields. Abba Chilkiya was very poor, and a number of examples illustrate his extreme poverty. He walked barefoot so that his shoes would not wear out. Abba Chilkiya put them on only in situations such as crossing water, when he could not see whether snakes or fish lay ahead ready to bite him. Abba Chilkiya's coat was a rented one, since he could not afford to buy his own. He preferred to have his feet scratched by thorns rather than risk tearing his clothing, since he could not replace it. By the end of the day, Abba Chilkiya could barely bring home enough food to feed his family, and often could not receive guests at his table. Abba Chilkiya was extremely humble and refused to take credit for the miracles performed through his prayers. In the Talmud he is used as a symbol of righteousness and is referred to as a "laborer of righteousness." Abba Chilkiya was so honest that he would not respond to people's greetings while working, since he considered it dishonest toward the employer who was paying him by the hour. When Abba Chilkiya borrowed a coat, he would take it off before carrying his tools, since he had only borrowed it to wear, not to carry loads in. Abba Chilkiya was a recognized miracle worker, and the sages of Israel turned to him many times, asking him to pray for rain during years of famine. This was due to his great piety and his lineage as the grandson of Choni HaMe'agel. The Talmud describes in detail an occasion when the sages came to Abba Chilkiya to ask him to pray for rain. Abba Chilkiya had a custom of praying together with his wife. Together they would go up to the roof, each standing in opposite corners, and pray.Abba Chilkiya was the grandson of Choni HaMe'agel and the cousin of Chanan HaNechba. All three had the ability to bring rain through their prayers to the Almighty. Abba Chilkiya was the son of Choni's son, while Chanan HaNechba was the son of Choni's daughter.Abba Chilkiya's wife was righteous in her own right. She would dress up and greet her husband every day so that he would not look at any other woman. Together, Abba Chilkiya and his wife had two sons. Despite their great poverty, Abba Chilkiya and his wife gave much charity. Abba Chilkiya's wife gave more charity than her husband, since she was home all day. In addition, she gave prepared food, while Abba Chilkiya himself gave only money, which is one step further removed from actual food. It was for this reason that Abba Chilkiya's wife's prayers were sometimes answered before her husband's. Abba Chilkiya had wicked gangster neighbors who tormented him, and he wanted to pray for their deaths. Instead, his wife prayed that they would repent, which they did. This was an additional merit of Abba Chilkiya's wife over her husband, allowing her prayers to be answered first.Abba Chilkiya was a reincarnation of Manoach, the father of Samson, whom the sages called ignorant for following his wife and heeding her advice. In his reincarnation as Abba Chilkiya, he proved that he had good reason for such behavior. One example given is when Abba Chilkiya followed his wife into his house in order to keep her away from two students whom he did not know and therefore could not trust. Abba Chilkiya's wife was a reincarnation of Hatzlelponi, the wife of Manoach. And in this life, too, her prayers were answered before those of her husband, just as the angel first appeared to Hatzlelponi rather than to Manoach.Abba Chilkiya is buried in the town of Faram, near the town of Chatzor HaGlilit in northern Israel. He is buried in a cave together with his cousin Chanan HaNechba, near a neighboring cave containing the graves of his grandparents, Choni HaMe'agel and his wife. It was customary among the residents of Safed and the Galilee to pray at these three graves during times of drought.

Knowing that he would hide if a petition were sent to him by Torah scholars, the sages instead sent schoolchildren to beg him to intercede for them. These little children would approach Chanan HaNechba and grab the hem of his garment, crying, "Father, Father, give us rain." He would then pray to the Almighty and say, "Act for the sake of those who cannot tell the difference between a father who can give rain and a father who cannot give rain." Chanan HaNechba was the son of Choni HaMe'agel's daughter, while his cousin Abba Chilkiya was Choni's grandson through his son. All three had the ability to bring rain through their prayers to the Almighty. Chanan HaNechba is buried together with his cousin Abba Chilkiya in Chatzor.