Taanit 23 - Choni the circle maker

Once the rains were very late in coming, and people asked Choni to pray for rain. He told them to hide away their clay ovens intended for the coming Passover sacrifice - for they would melt -  prayed for rain, but it did not come. Choni then drew a circle and swore that he would not leave it until his prayer was answered. A slight drizzle started to trickle. "This is not what I asked for," - said Choni - "but a powerful rain!" Immediately it started raining with force, and each drop was like a bucket. "That is not what I asked," - said Choni - "but a normal beneficial rain." A medium rain started to fall - but it would not stop! People collected on the Temple Mount because of the water and asked Choni to pray to stop the rain. He replied, "It is not proper to ask God to stop a blessing, even if it is too much of it."

Nevertheless, he said, "Bring me a bull for a sacrifice." He took the bull, put his two hands on its head, and said, "Master of the world, your children cannot stand too much bad or too much good." The wind blew, the sun showed, and the rain stopped.

All his life Choni was bothered by the phrase, "When we came back from Babylon to rebuild the Temple, we were like dreamers." This exile lasted for seventy years, but can anyone sleep for that long? Once Choni saw a man planting carob trees. The man told him that he was producing for his grandchildren, just as his grandfathers planted for him, for it takes seventy years for a carob to grow. Choni then sat down to eat and fell asleep. When he awoke, he saw a man by the carob tree who told Choni that he was a grandson of the man he had seen earlier. Choni deduced that he had slept for seventy years. He went to the study hall, where he heard the students say, "Today all is clear to us, just like in the days of Choni, the circle maker." He said, "I am Choni." But they did not believe him and did not pay him proper respect. He prayed for mercy and died.

Art: A man asleep on a table by (after) Arie De Vois