Katsida di Hitler: Piyut “Mi Khamokha” and Piyut “Takhbu ‘Ala Sabat Marrabba’” by Mattathia ben Simchon. Casablanca, [1943].
This katsida recounts Hitler’s conquests and domination over Europe and North Africa, the Nazi plot to annihilate the Jews, their defeat in North African territories, and the return of the Jews to Palestine. The katsida was published with the approval of the regional censorship authority (Visa fait par le Service du Contrôle Régional des Informations).
The opening is in Hebrew and follows the poetic form of Mi Khamokha hymns, as they developed in their North African expression. The remainder of the text is in Judeo-Moroccan Arabic and is written in the style of the traditional Moroccan katsida. As is known, the Mi Khamokha piyyutim composed by Jewish poets in North Africa were devotional poems recounting miraculous events experienced by their communities. Most followed the model of Rabbi Yehuda Halevi, who recounted the miracle of Purim in his hymn for Shabbat Zakhor.
[4] pp. Tears and small losses with minor damage to text.
