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One Little Goat
Pesah 5784
Every year, I look forward to singing Had Gadya at the end of the seder. According to our family tradition, each person assumes a role and makes a sound effect associated with their character — “meeeh” for the goat, “arf” for the dog, and so on. It gets really interesting when we get to the butcher and the angel of death. The song is playful and fun, but few among us take the time to consider the message of the song (if there even is one) and what it’s doing in our seder.
The song first appears in a manuscript from Provence in the 13th-14th century, but didn’t originally have a connection to the haggadah or Passover. In his commentary, Rabbi Josh Kulp points to a passage from the Talmud that feels rhythmically and thematically connected to our Passover ditty, but makes the theological point more explicitly:
Ten strong things were created in the world:
A mountain is strong, but iron hews it;
Iron is strong, but fire softens it;
Fire is strong, but water extinguishes it;
Water is strong, but clouds carry it away;
Clouds are strong, but the wind scatters them;
The wind is strong, but the body bears it;
The body is strong, but fear breaks it;
Fear is strong, but wine banishes it;
Wine is strong, but sleep works it off.
And death is stronger than them all.
But righteousness saves from death.
-Talmud Bavli Bava Batra 10a
Give everything time and the appropriate remedy and it will pass. Until the end in which we’re meant to consider the limits of mortality and ask the question — is anything in this world stronger than death? Had Gadya and this passage offer a possible response — God and righteousness are both stronger than death.
We’re no longer talking about a kids’ song. Now we’re talking about serious adult themes of life, death, and ultimate meaning. The implicit theology is that the only way to “conquer” death is by living a life of purpose and meaning.
Some suggest that Had Gadya is a parable about Jewish history. In every generation, a predator arises to defeat us. In the unending cycle of violence, Jews have often been caught in the thorns of history. “Not only one enemy has risen against us to annihilate us...” says the haggadah, “but in every generation there are those who rise against us to annihilate us. But the Holy Blessed One saves us from their hand.”
These themes feel poignant as we approach Passover this year.
By participating in the age-old ritual of telling our story and asking questions in a free exchange of ideas with family and friends, we transcend the particular threats and fears of the moment. In doing so, we link our lives to something eternal. The wine helps banish our fears, Elijah visits with his promise of a better world to come, and for an evening (or two) we participate in an act of transmission of our values from one generation to another. We consider our part in the grand drama of Jewish history. We remember where our people came from. And consider the younger voices at the table who carry our hopes of what our people might yet become. By having a seder, we are participating in a project that began long before we were born and will continue long after we are gone. This is our ultimate victory over our enemies — by continuing to pass on the Jewish story from generation to generation. In that way, even one little goat can make a big difference.
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