אֶבֶן הַשְּׁתִיָּה

ביטוי (אנגלית)

The Foundation Stone

הגדרה (אנגלית)

The stone that lay beneath the Holy of Holies in the Temple, now located at the center of the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Figuratively: something fundamental or foundational — a cornerstone or essential principle.

("Rabbi Yose ben Ḥalafta said: Why is it called the Foundation Stone? Because from it the world was founded" – Bamidbar Rabbah (Vilna), Naso 12; and also: "This is the concept of those who travel on Rosh Hashanah to the righteous... the righteous of the generation, who are like the Holy of Holies, the Foundation Stone... they are the righteous upon whom the world is founded" – R. Nachman of Breslov, Likkutei Moharan 61; and also: "Language, language — and its ground, its 'Foundation Stone'" – Bialik, Chevlei Lashon.)