Moses ben Maimon (1135?-1204 CE), commonly known as Maimonides, was born in Córdoba, then a city in the Almoravid empire, and died in Egypt. He was a revered Jewish philosopher and scholar whose prolific writings became a cornerstone in the interpretation of Talmudic law. He was also an astute astronomer and a physician of great repute, bringing health to the poor and, as the following story shows, to the great as well.

When the Holy One, blessed be He, created man, he determined that there would be a time to weep and a time to laugh, since the human being needs both things, and without them life is no life.

On a certain occasion the king asked Maimonides: “Why do I feel so depressed, since I have no pain at all and do not suffer from anything?”

Maimonides examined the monarch in the presence of his ministers, and did not find any illness whatsoever. The doctor thought deeply for a moment, and then suddenly gave the king a couple of loud slaps.

At the sight of such audacious behaviour the ministers were stunned, and were already running to arrest Maimonides when the doctor, addressing himself to the king, asked: “Are you still sunk in depression?”

“No,” replied the king, astonished.

“Why have you done such a strange thing?” the ministers then asked Maimonides.

“The king enjoys a very comfortable life,” he explained to them, “but he must avoid living only in joy and laughter. Sadness and happiness descended to the earth intimately linked together, and both are necessary for man. For this reason I slapped the king in the face: so that in becoming angry, the depression would be dispelled from his soul.”

And for his great wisdom, the king pardoned Maimonides for his insolence.