Portrayals of Temanim

PAUL CURRAN

Yemen – that mysterious country situated just below Saudi Arabia where sea meets desert and cultures have both collided and collaborated for millennia, birthing one of the richest cultures in the Middle East. Yemenite Jews, or Temanim as they are known in Hebrew, have resided in Yemen since at least the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. Some literature dates the community back to the time of King Solomon, who is said to have sent Jewish sailors to the south in search of precious metals to adorn the Temple.

The Jews of Yemen lived relatively well for centuries. Starting in the 10th century, the less tolerant Shiite Zaydi clan seized power from the more tolerant Sunni rulers. The late 1800s marked the opening of the Suez Canal and many Jews from Yemen interpreted this (as well as a number of other modernizations in the land of Israel) as a sign of the coming of the Messiah, and a few hundred Temanim left Sana’a and the surrounding areas for new lives in Jerusalem and Jaffa with this in mind. After the state of Israel was established, more than 80 Jews were killed in a pogrom in Aden and, by 1950, more than 50,000 Jews had immigrated to Israel in Operation Magic Carpet. The majority of Yemenite Jews reside in Israel today and the Jewish population in Yemen has dwindled to below 400.

University of British Columbia student Ezra Mizrahi had the opportunity to visit the small Jewish community while living in Yemen in 2007. In an interview, he noted, “The Jewish community that is left in Yemen is made up of the community of Raidah and a community further north in the Sa’dah area. The community in Raidah at the time, although this has changed now, was living mostly peacefully alongside their Muslim neighbors. The Jews of Sa’dah, however, were less fortunate. They were forced out of their homes by extremists in the region, and have since been living in a protected area in Sana’a.”

One unique tradition continued today that Mizrahi noticed during his Yemen stay is the ritual of reading the Torah in both Hebrew and Aramaic. This tradition stems from the era when Aramaic was the common language and many Jews did not understand Hebrew.

I have teamed up with Vancouver-based Yemenite-Israeli Orit Goldfarb-Camus to create paintings of Jewish life in Yemen, highlighting images of the Yemenite Jewish bride. (My own background is that I was born in Vancouver and I will be making aliyah in July.) Goldfarb-Camus creates the paintings’ whimsical and colorful backgrounds while I paint and draw the figures in black acrylic paint. These paintings are meant to invoke the rich history and turbulent present of the Jews in Yemen.

In Yemen, Jewish brides are adorned with ornate and nearly all-encompassing silver filigree, colorful jewels and rue leaves, which are meant to ward off evil. Historically, Yemenite Jews excelled in the art of jewelry making and metallurgy, and their beautiful designs are highlighted in traditional bridal outfits. As well, a Yemenite Jewish bride’s hands are covered with intricate designs of henna (camphire plant) ink. The pre-marriage ritual where the decoration is put on is known as the Henna, and the roots of this event date back to the Bronze Age, according to historian Johannes C. De Moor.

This particular ceremony comes from a passage in the Torah that is digested differently by Mizrachi and Ashkenazi traditions. The Song of Songs includes the line, “My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of En-Gedi.” An authority on henna traditions, Catherine Cartwright-Jones, has noted that Rashi interpreted this passage to mean that the camphire plant was a metaphor for forgiveness and absolution, as the plant protected vineyards in Israel from erosion. In Yemenite tradition, this passage is interpreted literally, as henna designs cover the bride’s hands and arms before the wedding.

Yemen Echoes is on display at the Locus Restaurant and Lounge (4121 Main St.) in May. The artist’s reception (open to all) is Wednesday, May 2, 8 p.m. This show is dedicated to the memory of Yair Camus z”l and his ancestors from Yemen. For more information, visit paulscurrent.com.

Paul Curran ([email protected]) is the Simon Fraser University Hillel director.

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