Jacob's Well in Haran is not only a place of deep Torah meaning; it is also an important tourist destination for Jewish travelersThis week's Torah portion tells the story of Jacob and Rachel's meeting. It is written: “Then Jacob went on his journey and came into the land of the people of the east. And he looked and behold a well in the field” (Genesis 29:1).This biblical story may seem imaginary to us, but it can become very real and tangible, because we too can visit this very well today. At least I did. It lies in Haran, in southeastern Turkey, and the locals call it “Yakup Kuyusu” (Jacob's Well).I have traveled a good deal in my life, and I find that Haran is different. You arrive expecting dust and find, instead, a silence that seems to have been waiting for you for 3,000 years.Besides this well, love flared at first sight between our patriarch Jacob and Rachel. “And when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept” (29:11).Consider that. A man who had traveled alone across the desert, carrying nothing but his fear and his father's blessing, sees a young woman with her sheep and weeps openly.
Jacob's Well in Turkey: The beginning of the Bible's first love story reopens to tourists
The well has survived through the centuries partly because Muslims also hold it sacred. Since the ground has been covered by centuries of soil, a structure stands above it.
In brief
Jacob's Well in Haran is not only a place of deep Torah meaning; it is also an important tourist destination for Jewish travelersThis week's Torah portion tells the story of Jacob and Rachel's meeting. “And when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept” (29:11).Consider that.
This is the opening of the story, shared with credit to The Jerusalem Post. The rest of the report — with every detail — continues on the publisher’s website.
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