21st Century Bogatyr: An Otherworldly Havdalah

by Zvi Baranoff

It is subjective to describe Dovid's mushroom experiences as trance-like. That is certainly what it would appear to be from the outside, looking in. However, that is not how Dovid perceived the time interacting with the mushrooms of Planet Birobidzhan.

From the first encounter when he was ten until Dovid's most recent, each of the half-dozen sessions felt like an immersive seminar of sorts. Knowledge and understanding seemed to be poured into him to the point of overflowing.

It felt something like getting a drink from a waterfall or a powerful hose. He couldn't possibly have absorbed it all. Certainly, not on his own. As of yet, however, he had spoken to no others about these seismic psychic and emotional floodings that had been transforming him.

The encounters each began in the same way. After chewing on the fleshy fungus a calmness came over Dovid. A sense of overall comfort and peacefulness enveloped him. His breathing became very regular and the physical world around him slowly faded away before the encounter began in earnest.

Dovid perceived a curtain opening or something like a veil lifting. Then, he saw a hand stretching before him holding a scroll. The scroll unfurled before him with lettering that he didn't recognize.

As if hearing the words spoken but yet unspoken, or perhaps spoken directly to his mind, in Biblical Hebrew, quoting directly from Ezekiel, with utmost clarity, Dovid perceived a voice that wasn't quite a voice speaking.

These are the words he heard each time: "Son of Man, open your mouth and eat what is offered. Son of Man, feed your stomach and fill your belly with the scroll that I give you."

The perceptions from that point became panoramic. Sound and sights blended. Time lost all meaning. Space unfolded. Colors blended. Void and form would coincide and Dovid would witness the moment of creation.

Gasses and solids would blend and move outwards at unfathomable speed as they formed stars with innumerable planets circling each star. When the expansion rested, a peaceful field would unfold, covered with mushrooms. The expanse above was always a star-filled night sky of unfamiliar constellations.

Following this sequence that he began to think of as a standardized introduction, something that could be understood as more akin to a lecture or instructional film began.

Dovid would see, feel and hear multi dimensional puzzles being assembled, diagrams, maps and charts protracting, building blocks stacking, architectural blueprints unfolding, great flowing motions of immense patterns of cosmic winds and dust storms and hurricanes moving about.

For Dovid, in a very personal way, unasked questions were answered. Mysteries were resolved and then new questions were raised and new mysteries arose. With each session, earlier lessons would repeat with greater rapidity, laying the groundwork for the advancement.

Dovid was unable to determine a direct line between the mushroom guidance and knowledge absorbed. Nonetheless, he found that he was able to approach practical matters in unique problem solving ways with a sense of knowing that could not be easily explained. That capacity certainly would catch Der Profesor and his associates by surprise.

How could it be explained that a child from a shtetl could intuitively understand metallurgy, complex physics, star mapping of distant galaxies, the process to create new liquid fuels, and more? Surely, no other possibilities than either inherent genius or the guidance of a superior intelligence. Dovid had yet to share the source of his inspiration.

As each of the previous programmings headed towards conclusion, the vista of the field with the mushrooms returned. Then, as if self-constructed, a craft assembled amongst the mushrooms. There would be a blast of light and the craft would lift into the star-filled horizon. Dovid would see from the vantage point of the rising rocket and then that sky would fade and he would once again be aware of the physical world around him. After another half hour or so, he would be able to move about.

On that hot Shabbos afternoon, not far from the zebra ranch, in the woods above the swimming hole, the general pattern continued. Fields and hills of flowering plants unfolded. Schools of fish, herds of land beasts, flocks of birds and swarms of insects whirled about.

Then, in a distinct break from the pattern, a clearing of sorts in the imagery occurred and the bend in the stream where the kibbutzniks swim came into focus.

The young woman that Dovid was enamored with filled his vision and then the vista of the field with the mushrooms returned.

In the place where he would have expected a craft to form, a human phallus rose to full erection. Above the phallus, filling the sky, a pair of legs spread themselves and the entire skyline was a human vagina. When the phallus reached climax, the horizon exploded with a glorious array of unfamiliar stars.

Dovid's normal consciousness slowly returned and the world around him came into focus.

The sun had set. The Shabbos on Planet Birobidzhan had concluded while Dovid was immersed in the otherworldly. Through the trees, the sky that Dovid knew was visable. He remained reclining on the ground, gazing at the firmament.

Dovid, a boy on the cusp of turning thirteen, thought about the Shechinah's arrival at the moment of the havdalah, the conclusion of the Sabbath. He considered the separation between the holy and the common place, between the Shabbos and the work week. And he contemplated the possible lessons of the mushroom induced visions.

While walking back to First Landing, Dovid determined that the time had come for him to confide in Der Profesor about the mushrooms. As he approached the airport, however, the lights downtown grabbed his attention.

While certainly not as vibrant or exciting as New New York or New Jerusalem, First Landing had developed a small entertainment district. The bars, restaurants, bordellos, shops and cafes downtown reopen after the Shabbos concludes and stay open late.

The district offers a reprieve for those that need more of a separation between the Shabbos and the beginning of their work week than that of a burning braided candle and a sip of wine from a shared cup.

Dovid headed towards his favorite cafe for a cup of strong tea. Tomorrow, he assured himself, would be soon enough for that discussion with his mentor.

This is not a Jewish story. It is, however, a story about Jews. One does not need to be Jewish to read this tale any more than one needs to be a Hobbit or an Elf to read Lord of the Rings.

This story is a work of fiction. The setting for this tale is in the distant future, on the far away Planet Birobidzhan. This planet was settled by Jewish exiles from Planet Earth.

The population of Planet Birobidzhan has been cut off from the Home Planet for a long time. They have developed their own unique culture, traditions and linguistics.

The language spoken on Planet Birobidzhan is primarily Yiddish. I have sprinkled a significant number of Yiddish words and phrases throughout the telling of the tale. I also refer to various Jewish religious and cultural touchstones.

To make this story more accessible, I have included a glossary of words and phrases in Yiddish and Hebrew that are used as well as some explanations of religious terms and holidays.

I hope that readers find this to be useful.

The link to the Glossary is here:

https://21stcenturybogatyr.blogspot.com/2023/01/a-useful-guide-glossary-to-planet.html?m=1

פּלאַנעט ביראָבידזשאַן

Do you want to read more about Planet Birobidzhan? Here are all the posted installments so far, in the order that they were posted. Just click your way through the story!

1 On A Planet Safe for Yidden

https://21stcenturybogatyr.blogspot.com/2022/02/on-planet-safe-for-yidden.html

2 Yenne Velt: A History of Planet Birobidzhan

https://21stcenturybogatyr.blogspot.com/2022/02/yenne-velt-history-of-planet-birobidzhan.html

3 Another Globe, Perhaps?

https://21stcenturybogatyr.blogspot.com/2022/02/another-globe-perhaps.html

4 Bereshis: The Transport & Transformation of the Founders

http://21stcenturybogatyr.blogspot.com/2022/03/bereshis-transport-transformation-of.html

5 The Town of First Landing

https://21stcenturybogatyr.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-town-of-first-landing.html

6 A Personal History of an Early Settler on Planet Birobidzhan

http://21stcenturybogatyr.blogspot.com/2022/05/a-personal-history-of-early-settler-on.html