The amazing narrative of Reish Lakish's encounter with cannibals, as recounted in our Gemara on Amud Aleph, presents an intriguing tale that warrants deeper exploration:

רֵישׁ לָקִישׁ זַבֵּין נַפְשֵׁיהּ לְלוּדָאֵי שְׁקַל בַּהֲדֵיהּ חַיְיתָא וְגֻלְגֻּלְתָּא אֲמַר גְּמִירִי דְּיוֹמָא בָּתְרָא כֹּל דְּבָעֵי מִינַּיְיהוּ עָבְדִי לֵיהּ כִּי הֵיכִי דְּלֵיחוּל אַדְּמֵיהּ

Reish Lakish sold himself to gladiators, taking with him a bag and a round stone inside. He believed that there was a tradition that, on the final day of a captive's life, before his captors killed him, they would fulfill any request he made to ensure that their "blood would be fresh."

יוֹמָא בָּתְרָא אֲמַרוּ לֵיהּ מַאי נִיחָא לָךְ אֲמַר לְהוּ בָּעֵינָא אֶקְמְטִינְכוּ וְאוֹתְבִינְכוּ וְכֹל חַד מִינַּיְיכוּ אֶמְחְיֵהּ חַיְיתָא וּפַלְגָא קַמְטִינְהוּ וְאוֹתְבִינְהוּ כֹּל חַד מִינַּיְיהוּ כַּד מַחְיֵיהּ חַד חַיְיתָא נְפַק נִשְׁמְתֵיהּ חַרְקִינֵּיהּ לְשִׁינֵּיהּ אמַר לֵיהּ אַחוֹכֵי קָא מְחַיְּיכַתְּ בִּי אַכַּתִּי פָּשׁ לָךְ גַּבַּי פַּלְגָא דְּחַיְיתָא קַטְלִינְהוּ כּוּלְּהוּ

On the final day before his scheduled execution, they asked Reish Lakish what he desired. He requested to tie them up and have them sit, striking each one of them one and a half times. He bound them and made them sit, and with each strike from the stone in the bag, the person he struck would die due to Reish Lakish's immense strength. In his anger, Reish Lakish gritted his teeth and said to the one he killed, disguising the situation from the others: "Are you laughing at me? You still have half a strike left, as I struck you only once." He killed them all and managed to escape his captors.

The precise meaning of the term דְּלֵיחוּל אַדְּמֵיהּ, "that his blood be fresh," is subject to some debate. Rashi suggests that if the captive's last wish is granted, he would be forgiving of his impending slaughter. Arukh (Erech Ches), on the other hand, explains that if the person is in a relatively pleasant mood before their death, the taste of their meat will be sweeter.

This "captivating" story raises various questions, particularly concerning Rashi's interpretation. How can we believe that the captives would forgive their own murder simply for being granted a trivial last wish?

By employing our imagination, we may provide a more sophisticated psychological explanation. It is possible that the captives had endured days of torture and deprivation before being granted a final wish. In a manner akin to Stockholm Syndrome, this act of granting a wish might induce a sense of gratitude and even ingratiation towards their captors. Perhaps this is what Rashi refers to.

However, Chasam Sofer understands the entire story as a metaphor. He posits that there are two tools to combat the evil inclination, Yetzer Hara. One is the study of Torah, while the other is an awareness of one's mortality and ultimate death.

Chasam Sofer argues that awareness of death alone could lead to nihilism in an unsophisticated and undeveloped individual. The mindset might become "Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we shall die" (based on a verse in Yeshayahu 22:13), resulting in a nihilistic outlook. Therefore, one needs the study of Torah alongside this awareness. It is the combination of recognizing the potential futility of life and the awareness of a higher, more spiritual alternative that allows for piety instead of nihilism. The captives forgiving their captors who grant them a hedonistic wish reflects the way in which the evil inclination seduces a person with trivial worldly pleasures, causing them to forfeit greater value, meaning, and spiritual success.

Translations Courtesy of Sefaria, except when, sometimes, I disagree with the translation

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