MY FAMILY
THE BETA ISRAEL CURRICULUM
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STORK
Teachers should now explain that when people focus on maintaining hope, they often find symbolism in unexpected places: For the Beta Israel, this symbol can be seen in the stork, a bird whose migration path passes from Israel to Ethiopia. Whenever the Beta Israel would see a stork flying in the skies above Ethiopia, they would call out: Shimala, shimala, agradachin arusalam dahana – literally: “stork, stork, inquire how fares Jerusalem, our nation.”44
By calling out to the storks, the Beta Israel was expressing its desire to feel a stronger connection to Jerusalem, their Jewish national homeland, where they always faced in prayer as they dreamt to return. Simply put, each time the Beta Israel saw a stork, they felt a sense of hope that just as that stork was on its way to Jerusalem, their community too, would soon make its journey home.
Credit: https://www.bac.org.il/
44 One of the best-known modern songs associated with the Beta Israel is called Shir HaHasida (Song of the Stork) which is based on this association. For a recording of this song, see: https://www.youtube.com/%20watch?v=Y4-y5FqsGxM.
