Samuel and King Shapur

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.

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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