Samuel and King Shapur
b. Sanhedrin 98a|b. Sukkah 53a
220–600
b. Sanhedrin 98a
King Shapur said to Samuel, “You say that the Messiah arrives on a donkey. I will send him one of my horses!” [Samuel] responded, “Do you have a donkey that is a thousand colors?”
b. Sukkah 53a
Samuel [would juggle] eight glasses of wine in King Shapur’s presence.
Translated byShai Secunda.
Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 2: Emerging Judaism.
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Engage with this Source
Talmudic passages that describe relationships between rabbinic sages and Sasanian royalty are most likely fantastical. The passages below imagine Samuel of Nehardea and King Shapur I (r. 240–270 CE) as friends.
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