By Vardah Littmann
More then thirty-six years ago when I was
in seminary, a friend and I spent Shabbos in Givat Shaul. The hostess wanted to
impress us with the sites of the area and took us to see Gan Habor. I cannot
remember if the park was already filled in or it was still a deep pit that had
to be descended into in order to play there. (I have a vague recollection it
was a pit). I also cannot remember if I was impressed or not. However I do know
that recently when I toured the neighborhood to learn about it, I remembered
that there was a Gan Habor.
Givat Shaul stands 820 meters above sea
level. Its land was purchased from the Arab villages of Deir Yassin
and Lifta by a society headed by Rav Nissim Elyashar, Rav Arieh Leib Dayan,
and Rav Moshe Kopel Kantrovitz in 1906.
The three founders, wanted a housing
solution for lower income families of Yerushalayim. Being that it was so
far from what was then the city helped make the price attractive. In the
year 1906, when it was bought, desolate countryside stretched all the
way to Machaneh Yehudah, making the Givat Shaul site seem miles away. It
was considered undesirable real estate, and so they were therefore able to
purchase more land for their money. Additionally, the area
was sandwiched between the Arab villages of Lifta to the north and
Dir Yassin to the west.
The name Givat Shaul is first mentioned in
the passuk (Shmuel I 15:34) as the home, and apparently the center of
government, of Shaul HaMelech. As a result, many people erroneously think
the neighborhood is named for and is the approximate location of
the Biblical Givat Shaul. In fact, his capitol was probably located
on Tel el-Ful (literally, Hill of Beans), the site of Gibeah, near Pisgat
Ze’ev.
Givat Shaul (the modern neighborhood) was
named as a tribute to Harav Yaakov Shaul Elyashar, who served as the
Rishon LeTzion (Sephardic Chief Rabbi) from 1893 to1906. He authored
the sefer Yisa Brachah (the word Yisa in Hebrew spells
the initials of his name) and was the father of one of the founders of the
suburb,
Rav Nissim Elyashar.
Rechov Amram Gaon has a very
precipitous incline that used to be twice as steep. The rise on Rechov
Amram Gaon was so sheer people joked that it was the place from
where the sa’ir la’azazel was thrown down on Yom Kippur
during the times of the Bais HaMikdash.
The building seen at the top of
the slope is now the Ner Moshe Yeshivah. It used to be a therapeutic
community home called Rosental.
At the end of the street is a
playground called Ha’bor (the Pit). Originally, there was a large pit in
which the park was situated. Today the pit has been filled in, making
a sweet, little, round recreational area, but the name still stuck
A mezuzah is to one’s right on the upper
part of the doorway as one enters a home or room. Metaphorically, Givat Shaul
can be visualized as the mezuzah of Yerushalyim since it is to the right and higher
up as you enter the city on Highway One.
Standing in Givat Shaul itself beneath Migdalah Saul on
Givat HaZofim gives you a panoramic view of the whole of the 
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