A Story for Shabbat: When Rambam Faced Poison with Faith and Wisdom

Little by little, people around Saladin, the King of Egypt, began to fill his head with lies. Jealous advisors spoke badly about his loyal Jewish doctor, Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, known today as the Rambam.

Why were they so bitter? The Rambam was a Jew and he was more skilled, wise, and respected than any of them. That was enough to spark their hatred.

They told the king that Rambam was simply waiting for the right moment to betray him. That one day, when Saladin placed full trust in him, the Jewish doctor would poison him with a deadly disease. What would Rambam gain from such a thing? They didn’t have an answer but lies don’t need logic. It feeds on fear, plants doubt, and breeds hatred.

Still, Saladin had seen the Rambam’s brilliance and care for his family too many times to dismiss him so easily. So instead of punishing him, he proposed a terrifying test.

A challenge would be set between Rambam and an Arab doctor named Kamun. Each would prepare a powerful poison and an antidote. Then, by lottery, one would drink the other’s poison and immediately take his own antidote, hoping it would work. If both survived, they would go another round. Whoever lived would become the king’s official physician.

Rambam listened calmly. His face showed no fear. His deep emunah (faith) in Hashem, the Creator of the world, gave him strength. “If Heaven has decided that I should die,” he told himself, “then nothing can stop it. But if Hashem wants me to live, no human being can take my life.”

He returned home and called a few of his closest students, loyal, courageous, and trustworthy. He shared with them the dangerous plan and gave them clear instructions.

The students were stunned. Their faces turned pale with worry. But Rambam raised his hand gently to calm them.

“With Hashem’s help,” he told them, “I have a way to survive.”

He explained that he would prepare two vials. One would contain a special liquid that would block the effects of any substance poison or medicine by resetting the body temporarily. This would allow him to survive long enough to take the second drink, a strengthening formula to bring his energy back.

“When I drink the poison and collapse,” he said, “carry me outside and pour the first drink into my mouth. Then, when it’s time, give me the second one. You must follow my instructions exactly, no mistakes. Watch my face, check my heartbeat, and don’t hesitate. With Hashem’s help, everything will be fine.”

The students practiced the plan many times. They reviewed every detail again and again, because they knew their teacher’s life depended on it.

On the appointed day, Rambam and his students arrived at the palace. The lottery was held and it was decided that Rambam would drink first.

He took the poison Kamun had prepared. His face turned white, and he collapsed.

His students sprang into action, following every step they had rehearsed. They gave him the first drink. Time passed, thirty minutes, and slowly, his breathing returned. Within two hours, he was fully awake, as if nothing had happened.

Now it was Kamun’s turn.

Rambam handed him a drink that looked and smelled like plain water. Kamun was terrified. What he didn’t know was that it was just flower nectar, processed in a way that made it completely clear and unrecognizable.

Still, Kamun panicked. He drank it, then immediately took the antidote he had prepared just in case. But nothing happened. That made him even more nervous.

He convinced himself that the Rambam had used a rare poison that would only take effect over time. He refused to eat, and would only drink milk but only milk from cows he watched being milked himself. He trusted nothing.

One day, as Kamun sat drinking a glass of milk, Rambam walked by. In a calm but serious voice, he said, “Be careful… you know what you’re drinking.”

Kamun froze. His face turned pale, and he collapsed. His heart stopped.

To his students, Rambam said quietly, “You see the power of the human mind. You saw me, I gave him nothing dangerous. But his fear and imagination took over, and they destroyed him.”

It was not poison, but panic, that took Kamun’s life. Rambam, with his wisdom and unshakable faith in Hashem, had survived both poison and plot.

Let this story remind us that sometimes the greatest strength we have is calm faith, clear thinking, and the quiet trust that Hashem is watching over us even in the most frightening moments.