“Come now, you must be quite clever if you managed to ensnare me like this — why do something so foolish as simply killing me?"

Before we continue with our story, we must relate a story pertaining to the last name of this great tzaddik. A story within a story, you might say, one that will help us understand the background of one of the greatest mekubalim, Rav Shmuel Abuchatzeira.

There are two possibilities which explain the name Abuchatzeira and how this great family of tzaddikim and mekubalim came to carry it. One story involves a terrible, old witch who used to dwell in the desert near Damascus, waiting for people to fall into her nasty traps so that she could kidnap them. Her powers were known far and wide, and few could escape her grasp once she had ensnared them, usually for the purpose of advancing her crooked spells and evil shenanigans.

It once happened that this witch used her powerful spells to draw the great tzaddik Rav Shmuel into her house, where she planned to kill him.  He tried to reason with her, convincing her with his great wisdom and grasp of all humans, even those as depraved as this witch, that she could make a far greater profit from pursuing an alternative plan to her murderous one.

“Come now, you must be quite clever if you managed to ensnare me like this — why do something so foolish as simply killing me? If you are really smart, you will hear me out first and listen to what I have to offer you. I think you will be very interested.”

“Fine! Speak!”