Hanukkah, Perfume and the Story of Judith of Bethulia

Judith of Bethalia Hanukkah Heroine

 Judith of Bethulia August Riedel painting

Worldwide, almost every faith has a holiday in the winter season honoring the return of light after the long, gloomy months of winter. The Jewish Hanukkah is one of the oldest celebrations devoted to bringing light into the darkness at this time of year. Lasting eight days, Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, where the Jews had risen up against their Greek-Syrian oppressors in the Maccabean Revolt. Also called the Festival of Lights, the holiday is celebrated by the lightning of the menorah, traditional food, games, and gifts. The custom of eating dairy foods on Hanukkah, with dishes like kugel, cheesecake, or rugelach, that all share one ingredient: cheese, is a custom rooted in the story of Judith of Bethulia.

I have always been fascinated by the story of Judith of Bethulia, as have many artists, through the years, who paid tribute to her beauty and courage.  On this first night of Hanukkah, we will revisit her story together, and paint the details, and the imaginary scents she surrounded herself with.

Judith of Bethalia and Hanukkah

Judith of Bethulia, by Carlo Francesco Nuvolone, second half of 17th century.

The Greco-Assyrian army, led by Holofernes, had surrounded the village of Bethulia, as a part of his campaign to conquer Judea. After days of intense fights, the siege was inexorably drawing to a close, and the situation became desperate once the water supply was cut off. There were no more words, no prayers left unsaid. No unshed tears. It was the last hour. Uzziah, captain of the troops, broke the silence and in a quiet, solemn, and sure voice, said: “Five days. Just give me five days. Five more days. If at the end of these five days, no rescue will come, then we will capitulate.” Women clung to his seriousness, and men were conquered, against their will, by his apparent self-control. But inside, Uzziah was desperate. He didn’t know what he was going to do in these five days. He had no plan.

 

Suddenly, he heard a voice behind him: ”Why are you testing G-d by giving him five-day ultimatums? If you really trusted Him, you shouldn’t be talking like that, Uzziah. And besides, don’t you know that a fate crueler than death awaits us if we fall into the hands of Holofernes?” Uzziah slowly turned to the warm voice that gently scolded him in the darkness of the night. The woman approached him, smiling at him. The moon’s rays slid on her beautiful face, framed by a black, mourning scar, and she recognized Judith of Bethulia, the high priest’s daughter. Everyone knew Judith. She was only 23 years old when her husband, Menashe, died, and since then she had dedicated her life to prayers and helping those in need, despite the countless marriage proposals she had received, for Judith was a woman of rare beauty. “Uzziah, trust me. I have a plan and nothing will happen to me. God brings, from time to time, salvation through women. Don’t forget Yael, Heber’s wife. She was a simple woman like me and she succeeded where all men have failed.” Judith quickly returned home. There was no more time to waste. She called the maid as soon as she rushed into the house: “Bring me the chest with the best clothes! Bring the jewelry box! Please make some sweet and fluffy loaves of bread! Do we still have those cakes with raisins and dried dates? The maid was moving with difficulty, she was older, but, encouraged by the dynamism of her mistress, she began to crawl under the beds and stand up pulling on some boxes, while Judith watched herself carefully in the mirror. She didn’t like what he saw. She was still young, not even 30 years old, but mourning had darkened her face with a suffering and sad air. It had been 3 years and 4 months since her husband had died and since then she had refused to enter the house. He had set up a tent on the roof of the house and spent his hours there, in prayer and fasting. He came down only on Shabbat and holidays. She was pale, malnourished, and dehydrated and her once bright skin was now shriveled dry, and colorless. “We work with what we have at hand, that’s it”, she said to herself with a sigh and took off her rough hemp coat, which she had been wearing since she became a widow. With the little water that was left in a pitcher, she hurriedly washed herself. Then she began to anoint his skin with a thick, scented oil. Heavy, sweet, and peppery aromas tipped with coriander and anise  wafted into the night air. Slowly, warm waves of myrrh and incense rose, musk, cinnamon and expensive resins, enriched with woods and amber. The light massage and the velvety oil brought back the rosy glow of youth to Judith’s cheeks.

Judith of Bethulia Gabriel Joseph Marie Augustin Ferrier

As the fresh smell of bread began to envelop the house, Judith dressed quickly and rummaged through the old chest for the bottle of essences. Wild jasmine smothered in hot incense, sweet fruit shackled in cinnamon oil, warm vanilla, and rose drowned in white honey enveloped her robes in a scented vapor that rose seductively with every step she took.  She clasped her heavy bracelets with a twisted pattern on her wrists, and the glittering necklaces encircled her delicate neck in several rows, sparkling on her chest. Many rich rings adorned her hands with long and thin fingers. The heavy earrings rattled with her every movement, catching the light in their play and throwing it on her face, reflecting it in her black eyes. The hair gave off an intoxicating, warm, tingly, lively aroma of an orchard of fruit and flowers after a summer rain.

Finally, she looked in the mirror, triumphant. She looked majestic like a queen, as if she was the one from her wedding day, as if no years had passed. The maid had put everything she had asked for in a large wicker basket: the cheese she made, for which she was famous throughout the city, the fluffy loaves of bread that spread an intoxicating smell, the cake with dried fruits, a jug of olive oil and a bottle of dark wine, which she kept even from the wedding banquet.  They walked quickly, with light and soft steps, like cats on the prowl into the night. When they came close to the Assyrian sentinels, she covered her face with a thin transparent veil, “I come from the city. I have an important message for your leader” she ventured. In a short time, the two women were led into a large, luxuriously decorated tent. Holofernes was sleeping on some soft carpets, propped up on pillows, and muttering something angry. He threw an angry look at the unexpected visit and continued dozing. Stunned, he revealed his face and waited silently, standing. A second look at the woman piqued his curiosity. He stood up amazed, a little embarrassed by his attitude. He arranged his clothes as he asked harshly, to mask his uncertainty.

Judith of Bethulia by Cristofano Allori

Her black eyes glistened with tears, an irresistible redness covered her cheeks, as her voice modulated, warm, and penetrating like a song. With each nervous gesture of her delicate hands, the perfume impregnated in her garments spread throughout the tent, filling the space with its sweet and dark seduction, awakening all of Holofernes’s instincts. He looked in amazement at the woman in front of him and felt growing in him an overwhelming desire to protect it. He had never experienced either warmth or beauty, and the wealth of sensations that this woman aroused in him were completely unknown to him. A breeze of tenderness had swept over him and he didn’t know what that meant either. He stood confused in front of her, not knowing how to react. To possess it here and now? He was still a Greek general. To kill her? How to destroy such beauty? To have it. Let it be his. That’s what he wanted and he didn’t know how. Suddenly, a thought came to his mind. A thought that reconciled both the man and the soldier in him. “If you tell me how to conquer the fortress and it turns out to be true, then I promise you anything you want and I will make you my wife. You will be my wife, mine!” He repeated, enraptured by his cunning.

famous paintings of Judith of Bethulia

Judith of Bethulia Beheading Holofernes by Caravaggio

In the following days, Judith of Bethulia and her maid became a known presence in the Assyrian camp. Frightened by the general’s orders, no one dared to disturb their daily walks. But time was drawing close. Judith arranged herself that evening with more care than ever. She outlined her black eyes with a thick line of kohl and glazed her lips with beeswax ointment and honey. The perfume of jasmine flowers and roses raised in the air, in rhythm with the dance of her rich locks, which fell dark and heavy, freed from the grip of the silver pins. Contrasting with the jet-black cascade of hair, the silver tiara glittered majestically around her. The jewels glittered hypnotically, and the silk belt woven with shimmering gold thread accentuated her slender waist. Nervousness brought a breath of fresh air to her rosy cheeks, which made her look even younger and more delicate. As he entered the tent, Holofornes let out a sigh of admiration. He got up quickly and took her hand to lead her to her place. The table was full of the most wonderful goodies placed on expensive silver dishes and the glasses shone invitingly in the candlelight. All around, colorful carpets, cushions covered with the most delicate silks, soft hand-embroidered blankets, flowers brought from afar, fruits, vases, and all kinds of gold and silver chalices and candlesticks in which large candles of pure wax shone. He had asked for the most precious things to impress her. Indeed, inside the tent, there was a luxury the likes of which he had never seen before.” As the time approaches when I will become your wife. Then I would like you to know me better. Look, for example, I brought this evening my own food, cheese made in my house, which is famous throughout Bethulia, an old and good wine that my father himself made from the vineyard behind the house, and bread. Please, taste. Tasting my food, you will know me.” That’s all Holoforn was waiting for! Judith quickly spread in front of him the cheese specialty of which she was so proud, the bread, and got up to serve him. It was a salty, slightly spicy, crumbly goat’s cheese that needed to be soaked in a lot of wine. She approached him from behind and, bending a little, poured wine into his glass. The perfume emanating from her locks, which were now touching his shoulder, drove him crazy. He had never smelled like this before, he wanted to put his head in her black hair and fall asleep there, inhaling the aroma of her body. Holofernes downed the first glass.  He left himself to her, eating from her hand, drinking from the glass in which she had first moistened his lips, breathing in her aromatic breath. He would have done anything she wanted, a little more cheese. Another mouthful of wine. ”Heaven, I’m in heaven, he thought”, as the vapors of her perfume and the strength of the wine clouded his mind more and more. He lays his head back heavily, where it meets the pillow. He sighed and fell asleep instantly, falling into her arms.  Without wasting time, Judith quickly took a pillow and placed it under his head. She unsheathed the sword that Holofernes held high above the bedding and raised it above the general’s head, closed her eyes and whispered a prayer, then slammed the sword down on his neck with all her might. The head rolled with a thud and came to rest on a chair leg. Surprised, she breathed rapidly and looked at him in horror. She thought she could still hear him snoring. She stood up quickly and dressed in her cape and wrapped his head, which was dripping blood, in a shawl. She walked calmly out of the general’s tent and headed towards the gates. Behind her, the maddening and dense perfume persisted, which had mixed with the sweetness of blood dispersed in dozens of drops of a violent red, in a strange seduction of death.

 Italian Menorah depicting Judith from 18th century source

That night, the Jews attacked the Greek camp, managing to save the Bethulia fortress and all its inhabitants. Frightened and confused, the enemies fled, leaving behind their riches and long-awaited supplies of water and food. The next day the women of the city gathered to see Judith of Bethulia, for the news of the salvation brought by G-d through her delicate hand had spread far and wide, and they blessed her, chaining themselves in dances in her honor. Judith took branches and flowers in her hands and gave them to the women who were with her, dancing with them, all crowned with olive wreaths. Thus adorned, they went out to celebrate in the city, Judith going before the women in dancing, while all the men of Israel followed behind them, with garlands in their hands and songs on their lips.

In memory of the brave Maccabean fighters, the courage of a woman, and the miracle of the oil that burned without ending, Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days, the celebration of light, of miracles, of overcoming obstacles when everything seems lost.

Nicoleta Tomsa, Senior Editor

Menorah in Milan in Corso Vittorio Emanuelle II

Menorah in downtown Milan Corso Vittorio Emanuele II by Ermano Picco, photo December 17th for this post

Hanukkah begins after sundown on Sunday, Dec. 18 in 2022 beginning on the Hebrew calendar date of 25 Kislev. and ends after sundown on Monday, Dec. 26th, Since our inception in 2010, CaFleureBon has had a tradition of celebrating Hanukkah and fragrance. I wrote our first Hanukkah Fragrances post on December 1, 2010, then in 2011Tama Blough (RIP) in 2012, next was Former Contributor Nancy Lichtenstein in 2013,  followed by Former Contributor Drew Chafee  in 2014Former Contributor Aaron Potterman 2015Robert Herrmann (RIP in 2016 as well as 2017) and Deputy. Editor Ida Meister in 2018, Alexander Helwani in 2019,  Former Contributor Dalya Azria 2020 and I wrote another article  in 2021. We have come from all religious backgrounds.-Michelyn Camen, Editor-in-Chief

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Nicoleta Tomsa, Senior Editor

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This is our Privacy and Draw Rules Policy

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6 comments

  • I just want to write that the story of Judith should inspire all women to live with power and not let men tell them what to do. With what’s going on in this world especially Iran, we celebrate women like Judith.
    Happy Chanukah to Cafleurebon.
    Power to all of us
    Bookmarked this Nicoleta. Super amazing

  • Chag Chanukah Sameach and happy holidays everyone! On this holiday we remember that a single candle can illuminate an entire dark room. A little bit of light can expel a lot of darkness.

  • Such a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing it with us. Happy Hanukkah to all who celebrate. Good tidings to everyone. Be joyous and kind to one another.