Today's daf TB Moed Katan 25 shares the eulogies as well as the impact of the death of some of the greatest scholars in sages in the Talmud.
“It was related that Rabbi Ḥanin was a son-in-law in the house of the Nasi. At first he did not have any children, but he prayed that God have mercy on him, and then had a child. On the same day that a son was born to him, he himself passed away. A certain eulogizer opened his eulogy for him with the following words: Happiness has been turned into sorrow; joy and suffering have become joined together. At the moment of his happiness he sighed his dying breath. At the moment he was graced with a son, his own grace was lost. And they named the child Ḥanan after his father.” (Sefaria.org translation)
“When Rabbi Yoḥanan passed away, Rabbi Yitzḥak ben Elazar opened his eulogy for him as follows: Today is as difficult for the Jewish people as the day that the sun set at noon, as it is written: “And it shall come to pass on that day, says the Lord God, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day. And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning for an only son, and its end like a bitter day” (Amos 8:9–10). And Rabbi Yoḥanan said: This was the day on which King Josiah was killed (see II Chronicles 35:20–24). This demonstrates that the most righteous person of the generation is described as the sun. ” (Sefaria.org translation)
Even nature and inanimate objects mourned the death of our sages ."The Gemara continues to discuss the death of the righteous: When Rabbi Abbahu passed away, the pillars of Caesarea, his city, ran with water as if they were shedding tears over him. When Rabbi Yosei passed away, the gutters of Tzippori, his city, flowed with blood. When Rabbi Ya’akov passed away, the stars were visible during the day. When Rabbi Asi passed away, all the trees were uprooted in a storm. When Rabbi Ḥiyya passed away, fiery stones fell from the sky. When Rabbi Menaḥem, son of Rabbi Yosei, passed away, the faces of the statues became smooth as if they had been smoothed with a plasterer’s trowel [meḥlatzaya]." (Sefaria.org translation)
One the most satisfying aspects of my job as a rabbi is funerals because I feel I'm really helping a family in need. Their loved one may not be a great Sage like Rabbi Yoḥanan nor have pillars shed tears like in Ceasaria when Rabbi Abbahu died, but each individual leaves a lasting impact on those he or she leaves behind. Almost everybody I bury is a good person whom people loved. I tried to highlight the deceased unique qualities that made him or her so special and beloved. By giving a eulogy that honors the deceased, I bring comfort to the survivors.
Sometimes I wonder what they will say about me when I got my eternal home. I know that there's a lot of room for personal improvement I could benefit from. I know that there is still time, God willing, I can become the person I truly want to be before I die. The only person who is stopping me becoming the best version of myself is myself. What is true for me is true for everybody. No matter what stage of life you find yourself in, you can become a better person so when you meet your Maker at the end of your days, you will be remembered as a blessing. What is stopping you?
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