Jerusalem Talmud Kilayim 9:3:15
Jerusalem Talmud Kilayim 9:3:15 · The Jerusalem Talmud
עוּלָּא נְחוּתָא הֲוָה. אִידְמָךְ תַּמָּן שָׁרֵי בְּכִי. אָמְרִין לֵיהּ מַה לָךְ בְּכִי אֲנָן מַסְקִין לָךְ לְאַרְעָא דְּיִשְׂרָאֵל. אָמַר לוֹן וּמַה הֲנָיָיה לִי. אֲנָא מוֹבַד מַרְגָּלִיתִי גַּו אַרְעָא מְסָאבְתָא. לֹא דוֹמֶה הַפּוֹלְטָהּ בְּחֵיק אִמּוֹ לַפּוֹלְטָהּ בְּחֵיק נָכְרִיָּה. רִבִּי מֵאִיר הֲוָה אִידְמִיךְ לֵיהּ בְּאַסְּיָיא. אֲמַר אֵימוֹרִין לִבְנֵי אַרְעָא דְּיִשְׂרָאֵל הָא מְשִׁיחְכוֹן דִּידְכוֹן. אֲפִילוּ כֵן אֵמַר לוֹן יְהַבִי עַרְסִי עַל גֵּיף יַמָּא דִּכְתִיב כִּי הוּא עַל יַמִּים יְסָדָהּ וְעַל נְהָרוֹת יְכוֹנְנֶיהָ.
Ulla was an emigrant. He was dying there and started to cry. They said to him, why are you crying? We shall bring you to the Land of Israel. He said to them, how does this help me? I am losing my pearl in an impure land. One cannot compare one who expires in the bosom of his mother to one who expires in the bosom of a strange woman. Rebbi Meïr was dying in Assos. He said, tell the people of the Land of Israel, there is your Messiah. With all that, he said to put his bier on the sea-cape since it is written (Ps. 24:2): “For He founded it on seas, based it on rivers.”