The Torah tells us, "Let there be light" (Gen. 1:3). But what was that light?
Jewish tradition answers with something truly special: the primordial light. And it wasn't just any light; according to tradition, it was so powerful that Adam could see from one end of the world to the other! But, alas, when Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden fruit, that precious light was the first thing they lost. Suddenly, the world seemed dark; the sun, by comparison, shone only like a candle.
But here’s where the story gets even more interesting. God, in his infinite mercy, preserved a tiny spark of that primordial light, encasing it within a glowing stone. This jewel, the Tzohar (meaning "splendor" or "illumination," and related to the Hebrew word for "noon," tzoharayim), became a beacon of hope.
The angel Raziel delivered this stone to Adam after his expulsion from Eden, a tangible reminder of what he had lost. The Tzohar wasn't consistently bright. Sometimes it glowed intensely, other times it was dim, a constant reminder of the shifting relationship between humanity and the Divine.
As Adam lay dying, he passed the Tzohar to his son Seth, and so began a remarkable lineage. Seth passed it to the righteous Enoch, who, as we know, grew so wise that he was taken up to Paradise in a chariot and transformed into the angel Metatron, the heavenly scribe and Prince of the treasuries of heaven! But before his ascent, Enoch gifted the Tzohar to his son, Methuselah. Legend has it that Methuselah slept in the jewel's radiant glow, and some say that's why he lived longer than anyone else!
Methuselah then passed it on to his son, Lamech, who in turn, gave it to his son, Noah. Remember Noah's Ark? Well, God instructed Noah to bring the Tzohar with him! As it says in Genesis 6:16, "Put the Tzohar in the ark." According to Targum Yonathan, God told Noah to "Go to the river Pishon and take a brilliant stone from there and place it into the ark, to illuminate it for you."
Noah hung the Tzohar on the deck, and for forty long days and nights, it illuminated the ark, guiding him through the darkness of the flood. Genesis Rabbah 31:11 tells us that Noah used the Tzohar's brilliance to determine day and night and feed the animals at their customary times. The stone dimmed during the day and shone brightly at night. Without it, as Midrash Aggadah states, the world would have grown dark.
But even this sacred object faced an earthly mishap. After the ark landed on Mount Ararat, Noah, in his post-flood exuberance, planted grapes, made wine, and, well, got drunk. In that moment, the Tzohar fell from its place, rolled into the water, and sank to the bottom of the sea!
Years later, the submerged Tzohar found its way into an underwater cave, where a woman went to secretly give birth to a child… Abraham! You see, King Nimrod had decreed that all newborn boys be killed, having foreseen that one born at this time would overthrow him. Afraid, Abraham’s mother abandoned him in the cave.
But the angel Gabriel descended and miraculously fed the infant Abraham with milk and honey flowing from his thumb! Because of this divine nourishment, Abraham grew at an astonishing rate. And on the third day, while exploring the cave, he found a glowing stone! The angel placed it on a chain around Abraham's neck.
Thirteen days later, Abraham's mother returned, expecting the worst, but instead, she found a grown boy wearing the glowing stone. Initially, she didn't believe it was her child, but when he showed her the Tzohar and its sacred light, she understood a miracle had occurred.
Abraham wore that glowing jewel all his life. It healed the sick and served as an astrolabe for studying the stars. Before his death, Abraham passed the Tzohar to Isaac, and Isaac, knowing its true worth, gave it to Jacob along with the stolen blessing that was meant for Esau. Rebecca, a seer, understood the stone was destined for Jacob.
Jacob wore the Tzohar when he dreamed of the ladder to heaven, the one with angels ascending and descending. He, in turn, gave it to his beloved son, Joseph, along with the coat of many colors. Jacob instructed Joseph to wear it always, knowing its power, though he didn't reveal it to his son.
When Joseph's brothers stripped him of his coat and threw him into the pit, they didn't realize the Tzohar was there, hidden beneath his garments. Snakes and scorpions filled that pit, and as Joseph shivered in the darkness, the Tzohar began to glow, chasing away his fear.
When Midianite traders rescued Joseph, they unknowingly carried the Tzohar with him to Egypt, where he was sold into slavery, ultimately leading him to become Prince of Egypt. While imprisoned, Joseph discovered he could use the Tzohar to interpret dreams by placing it in his cup and peering into it. As Genesis 44:5 says, “It is the very one from which my master drinks and which he uses for divination.” This is how he interpreted the dreams of the butler, baker, and eventually, Pharaoh himself, foretelling the seven years of famine.
That very cup, with the Tzohar nestled within, was later placed in Joseph's coffin. And it remained there until Moses recovered Joseph's bones and, guided by a dream, removed the glowing stone and placed it in the Tabernacle. There, it became known as the Ner Tamid, the Eternal Light.
And that, my friends, is why an Eternal Light burns above every Ark of the Torah in every synagogue to this day, a direct link to that primordial light of creation.
This whole story is a classic example of what's called a "chain midrash," a series of interconnected stories linked by a common object or character. In this case, it’s the Tzohar, evolving over generations, resolving questions about the first light and the meaning of "Tzohar" in the story of Noah’s Ark. Rashi, commenting on Genesis 6:16, notes the uncertainty, with some saying it was a window and others a precious stone. Most midrashim embrace the precious stone interpretation.
Some traditions even say that when Abraham passed away, God hung the Tzohar on the wheel of the sun! (B. Bava Batra 16b). And the Zohar (I:11a-11b) tells us that Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai himself possessed the Tzohar, its light illuminating the whole world!
So, the next time you see the Eternal Light in a synagogue, remember this incredible story. Remember the primordial light, the glowing stone, and the generations who carried its spark through darkness and toward hope. It's a powerful reminder that even in the darkest times, a spark of the Divine can illuminate our path.