In a small town in a vast Russian Tzar province there was a small Jewish community with their famous Rabbi,a big Kabballah knowledge master.One day, Yankele, all covered with cold sweat and red in face started to knock frenetically on the Rabbi door.The door opened and Yankele shouted, Rabbi, listen! What is wrong Yankele, the Rabbi asked? Rabbi, I was having breakfast, with a slice of black bread and I was just spreading the butter on it….. Yankele, Rabbi said, why you bother me with your breakfast, are you mad? Wait, said Yankele, a terrible thing happened! Have you seen Satan or what, asked the Rabbi. No, said Yankele, it is much worse. I have just finished to spread the butter on my bread when my Cat jumped on the table and the slice of bread fell to the floor! And guess what, the bread fell on the side with no butter on it! The rabbi jumped. No way Yankele, it is not possible, the bread slice always falls on the floor on the side with butter on it, it is the Physics and it is the Law! Rabbi, I have witnesses, Yankele said.
Rabbi went pale in his face. This is very serious what are you saying, it is a mystic event, Rabbi said, go home Yankele, and added;I have to study this….
Days, months, years passed, Rabbi was studying the Kaballah, Zohar, The book of Life, meeting other Rabbis from Prague to all Europe, writing letters to America and all over the world.
After Three years he summoned Yankele. Listen Yankele, Rabbi said, we have studied it for years and we have come to the only possible solution:
You have put the butter on the wrong side of your slice of bread!
Ps: this story was told by Umberto Eco to his friend Moni Ovadia, and Moni Ovadia has told this story on the Umberto Eco funeral.
There is something in this….story…. like a zen koan and it definitely has to do with the debt driven economy.