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BAAL SHEM TOV STORY
Following the Weekly Torah Reading
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THE DOWRY
"This thing comes from G d." (Bereishis 24:50)
"Forty days before the birth of a child, a Heavenly
Voice issues forth and proclaims: 'The daughter of
so-and-so shall marry the son of so-and-
so."'
The Baal Shem Tov was orphaned at a young age,
and thus was particularly concerned with the welfare
of orphaned children.
One such orphaned girl was taken in and raised in the
Baal Shem Tov's house. When she became of
marriageable age, the Baal Shem Tov arranged a
match for her. The perspective groom was also an
orphan, raised in the house of Rabbi Zev Kitses, one
of the Baal Shem Tov's closest followers.
It was then the custom for the family of the bride to
provide a substantial dowry to the groom to help the
young couple begin their new life together. The Baal
Shem Tov had pledged 200 gulden (golden coins) to
Rabbi Zev for the girl's dowry.
On the day of the wedding, after the festivities had
begun, the time for the bedeken arrived. The
bedeken is the ceremony that recalls the marriage
between Jacob, our forefather, and his marriage to
Leah and Rachel. The chosson (groom) is escorted
to the kallah (bride), who sits like a queen on a
throne-like chair. The chosson lifts her veil and,
after seeing her for the first time as his kallah,
lowers
the veil to cover her face. This is a very special and
joyful moment.
Just before the bedeken, Rabbi Zev approached the
Baal Shem Tov and said, "Rebbe, I will not escort the
Chosson to the bedeken unless you pay me the two
hundred gulden that you pledged for the dowry."
"Reb Zev, do you not trust me to pay my pledge?"
asked the Baal Shem Tov with a smile.
"It's not a question of trust," replied Reb Zev. "But
the Chosson and Kallah will be living in my house. I
cannot afford to support them on my own. As it is
written, 'if there is no meal (no livelihood) there
is no
Torah' (Mishnah Avoth 3:23). I can assure
you I will not change my mind."
At that moment, as the wedding guests were
assembling, Reb Leib of Kremenets arrived in a
nervous and agitated state. The Baal Shem Tov sat
him down and poured him a glass of wine. After a
sip, Reb Leib calmed down somewhat. He explained
to The Baal Shem Tov the reason for his unexpected
visit.
A local community member related to him a message
from the Poritz (the landlord and local governor).
The message informed
Reb Leib that the Baal Shem Tov had recently signed
a promissory note for a thousand gulden for the
ransom of the Poritz's prisoners. The prisoners were
tenant Jews who had failed to pay the Poritz the
rent on leased property on time, and were thus
imprisoned. The Poritz now demanded to be paid in
full and had sent the following message for Reb Leib
to relate to the Baal Shem
Tov: "Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov must immediately
pay me the debt in full or both you and Rabbi Leib will
also be thrown into prison in chains!"
The Baal Shem Tov called Alexei (his wagon
driver): "Quickly harness the horses and
prepare the wagon." He turned to Reb Leib: "Reb
Leib, take my wagon and go to the Poritz and pay
him the full amount. Then, hurry back for the
bedeken of the Kallah."
Rabbi Leib was unsure what he was going to pay the
Poritz with. He had no such amount of money, and
the Baal Shem Tov did not give him
anything. "Nevertheless," he reasoned, "if the
Rebbe himself is sending me on urgent mission, there
must be some miracle that will occur."
So Reb Leib set off.
When Reb Leib arrived at the Poritz's estate, he was
ushered into the Poritz's stateroom. "Rabbi Leib!"
boomed the Poritz. "Did you bring the thousand
gulden from the Baal Shem Tov?"
Reb Leib did not know what to say, but suddenly he
heard the words leave his mouth: "Of course, your
Excellency."
The Poritz smiled with satisfaction, and offered Reb
Leib a seat while he went to get them both a drink of
mead.
While the Poritz was gone, Reb Leib began to panic.
What should he do now! How would he pay the
Poritz? As he sat pondering his dilemma, he started
to think that the Poritz was a religious man, so
perhaps he could
appeal to his religious character?
The Poritz returned with the mead. "Your
Excellency," said Reb Leib,
"I need to speak to you of an important matter.
Your Excellency, I realize that you are a righteous
and honest person and would not take one penny
from another dishonestly. Now I am ready to pay
you the full amount, but according to our records,
The Baal Shem Tov does not owe you a thousand
gulden, and if you take that money you'll be
committing robbery. I know that as a religious, G d
fearing man, you would never do such a
thing."
The Poritz pondered Reb Leibs' words.
Just a few days before, the Poritz had a terrifying
nightmare and had woken his wife with a scream. He
had dreamed that he had passed on to the next
world and was being tortured as a punishment for
stealing money.
The Poritz immediately called for his records, and
began to search through his receipts of the lessees
that were ransomed. Sure enough, he found the
promissory note from the Baal Shem Tov. The Poritz
stared at the piece of paper for a few minutes, but it
seemed like an hour to the nervous Reb Leib.
Suddenly the Poritz rose from his seat, walked to the
fireplace and threw the note into the blazing
fire.
"Rabbi Leib" he said, "It seems, that in fact, I owe
the Baal Shem Tov two hundred gulden." The Poritz
counted out two hundred gold coins, placed them in
a velvet bag and handed it to the astonished Reb
Leib. "Rabbi, please give this to the Baal Shem Tov
with my sincere apologies."
Reb Leib began the trip back to Mezhibuzh, but
stopped along the way at a friend's inn. He sat with
his friend enjoying a glass of vodka as he related the
miraculous events of the day. Suddenly he
remembered that the Baal Shem Tov had told him to
hurry back so the bedeken of the bride could begin.
He quickly downed the last of his vodka, ran out to
the wagon and told Alexei to return to Mezibush as
fast as he could.
In Mezibush, the Baal Shem Tov awaited Reb Leib's
return. The wedding guests grew restless. A crowd
had gathered around the Baal Shem Tov. Suddenly,
the Baal Shem Tov rose from his chair and
said,"Look, he has stopped at an inn and is telling
the whole story!"
When Reb Leib finally reached Mezhibuzh, he gave
the Baal Shem Tov the bag of 200 guldens and began
to
relate all the details of what happened with the
Poritz. But the Baal Shem Tov cut Reb Leib
short:"Reb Leib, I already know what happened."
The Baal Shem Tov turned to his friend Reb Zev and
handed him the bag of two hundred guldens with a
bright smile and said, "Let the wedding
begin."
And so it was.
Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaCohane (Howard M.
Cohn, Patent Attorney) from a letter from a story in
Shivchei HaBesht as translated in In Praise of the
Baal Shem Tov by Ben Amos and Mintz.
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TORAH BAAL SHEM TOV
Selection from Sefer Baal Shem Tov on the Torah
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"And Abraham was old, well advanced in years; and
G d had blessed Abraham with everything."
(Bereishis 24:1)
Based upon what I heard from my grandfather on the
verse: "It came to pass, when Solomon was old, that
his wives turned away his heart after other gods,"
(I Kings 11:4), we see here that [when
Abraham was old] "G d had blessed Abraham with
everything."
"Everything" — bakol — has the numerical value of
ben — "son."1 The wise will understand
this.2
Degel Machane Ephraim, Chayeh
Sarah
There is no word in the Torah that cannot yield two
interpretations,3 which are the aspect
of masculine and feminine. Thus, there is nothing
created in the world that does not include
everything, with free choice given to choose either
aspect. Thus, "his wives turned away his
heart."
Ben Poras Yosef, p. 14c
1Both have the numerical value of
52.
2The verse says "For the ways of the
L rd are right; the just walk in them, but
transgressors stumble in them" (Hosea
14:10). The Torah is comprised of two aspects —
spirit and matter, revelation and concealment, the
Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge. Thus, the
Talmud states: "If a person is unworthy, the Torah
becomes a potion of death for him; if he is worthy, it
is a potion of life" (Yoma 72b). These two
aspects also correspond to the spiritual paradigms of
Giver and Receiver, or Lights and Vessels, and
Kabbalistically, are represented by the Masculine and
Feminine dimensions of creation. Only when they are
united can harmony reign in the universe. Even then,
however, the influence must be from above to
below — from giver to receiver, spirit to matter. When
the aspect of receiver dominates, then the vessel
can be too strong, and the light can be concealed.
This model applies to every word of the Torah, and is
the meaning of the verse: "his wives turned away his
heart." Abraham, however, merited "everything" —
i.e. a son. He learned Torah from the side of light and
revelation. Along these lines, the Degel Machane
Ephraim (parashas Masai) writes: "I heard from my
grandfather, in the name of the sefer Bris Menucha,
that if you see a Torah scholar who has incorrect
opinions and acts improperly, he certainly has drunk
from the 'bitter waters.'" Thus, the Rabbis taught in
Pirkei Avos (1:11): "Sages, be careful with
your words, lest you incur the penalty of exile, and
be banished to a place of evil waters, and the
disciples who follow you there will drink and die
(spiritually) and consequently, the Name of Heaven
will be desecrated."
3In Ben Poras Yosef, p. 23d, R.
Yaakov Yosef writes: "In every word, there are two
meanings, one of compassion, which is the aspect of
the Masculine, and one of judgment, which is called
the Feminine."
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi Dr. Eliezer
Shore
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THE PILLAR OF PRAYER
The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on Prayer
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Section 41
Imagine that you are going to die in your prayer due
to the intensity of your concentration. There are
those who concentrate (focus) so intensely that at
times it would be natural (the natural thing for them)
to die after two or three words that they say before
G d. When you think this, think in your heart: "What
point is there for me to feel proud or self-conscious
during this prayer, since I'm willing do die after a few
words."
Really, it is only because G d, in His great love, gives
him the ability to finish his prayers and remain
alive.
Tzava'as HaRivash, p. 4b
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi Dr. Eliezer
Shore
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THE LIGHT OF THE EYES
On the Greatness of the Baal Shem Tov
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Section 32
Once, when The Baal Shem Tov was in a certain
place, he opened the window on a cold winter day
and said, "I see here a great light from a Tzaddik
that lived hundreds of years ago." However, the
place was a garbage heap, for the house had long
since collapsed.
From here we see that the holiness of the Baal Shem
Tov will last forever, and is impossible to
extinguish.
Toldos Adam, remazim l'Pesach
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi Dr. Eliezer
Shore
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KESER SHEM TOV
Anthology of the Teachings of the Baal Shem Tov
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Section 47
The Baal Shem Tov taught:
Since the Jewish people had already said, "We will do
and obey whatever G d says,"1 why
does oral tradition say that G d had to impose the
Torah on the Jewish people by holding Mount Sinai
over their heads and threatening to bury them
underneath it if they didn't accept it?
The answer is that this comes to teach us that even
when one has no desire to learn Torah and serve
G d, nevertheless, one is not absolved from doing
so. One must force oneself by visualizing that [G d]
is [now holding Mount Sinai over his head and]
forcing him.1
1Exodus 24:7
1This is not meant merely as a
theoretical thought, but as a meditative visualization
that can re-ignite the enthusiasm of, "We will do and
obey," that naturally wanes and waxes throughout
the day.
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi Yehoshua
Starrett
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WHAT IF
Thoughts for Today Inspired by Yesterday
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Image that you are transfixed by the presence of a
mountain and suddenly a cloud apears and then
travels down and covers the mountain, obscuring it
completely.
Did Sarah die from the shock of
Yitzchak's alleged death or from learning that he
survived?
Did Rivka choose to be at the
well or
was
she compelled?
When do you blame an
occurrence,
such as the cloud taking away your mountain, when
do you call it fate or destiny. . .
In all
circumstances, there is always the what if. . . .
Send your comments to
Bst_Times@baalshemtov.com
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