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TALES OF THE BAAL SHEM TOV
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"If your brother becomes impoverished and his
means falter (looses his ability to support himself) in
your proximity, you shall strengthen him (come to his
aid and help him). . ." Leviticus 25:35
SINCERE PRAYER
And then there was the time that the Baal Shem Tov
and several of his closest followers were traveling by
horse and wagon to an unknown destination.
On the afternoon of the third day, they were all
freezing, exhausted and very hungry. The followers
had already asked the Baal Shem Tov on several
occasions, "Rebbe, when are we going to get to our
destination." But each time he indicated that he didn't
know himself. At some point, they started to hear the
sounds of people working in the distance. In a few
minutes, they arrived at a tiny, secluded village. To
everyone's relief, the Baal Shem Tov
announced, "We'll stop here for the night. I think we'll
be able to collect a large sum of Tzedeka (charity)
from one of the villagers."
They looked at each and rolled their eyes in disbelief
that they would collect a large amount of Tzedeka.
Given the dilapidated appearance of this tiny village,
they were skeptical that any of the villagers had much
money to give. And besides, they reasoned to
themselves, they were far from their hometown of
Mezibush and they doubted that the villagers had even
heard of the Rebbe.
The horse, also tired and hungry, slowly pulled the
wagon into the village and stopped by itself in front of
a run down house of a poor Jewish family. With a sigh
of relief, they all got down from the wagon and
knocked on the door. The woman of the house gave
them a warm welcome and asked them to come in
and sit down. Upon entering, they quickly saw that the
interior of this two room house was just as decrepit
as the outside.
After sitting by the heated stove for a few minutes, they
said, "Rebbetzyn, we can't thank you enough for your
hospitality. We've been traveling all day and we're still
cold and very hungry."
She felt sorry for them so she heated water for tea
and gave them the little bread that she had been
saving to feed her children. This didn't go unnoticed
by the children who were walking around in rags and
starring at this group of strangers eating their meager
dinner. They began crying, "Mama we're hungry.
Please give us something to eat." The mother was
heart sick, but after feeding the men, there just wasn't
any more food. All of the men, except the Baal Shem
Tov, were mortified by the scene of the children crying.
They looked with questioning eyes at the Rebbe but
he seemed unmoved.
Just then, Reb Moshe, returned home. He visibly
cringed when he saw his children crying of hunger,
his upset wife and the group of unknown Hasidim
sitting around the table eating their last morsel of
food.
Immediately, the Baal Shem Tov stood up and
introduced himself and the others.
Moshe's business was selling liquor from his house
and he had just returned from an unsuccessful trip.
He had tried to purchase a keg of whiskey on credit
but was turned down because he was already deeply
indebted to the whiskey dealer from previous
purchases.
At first, Moshe was very flattered that the famous Baal
Shem Tov had come to visit him of all people. But that
feeling soon changed when the Baal Shem Tov
said, "My dear friend, we've come all this way to collect
eighteen rubles from you. It is for a very good cause
and I'm sure you'll be blessed from giving this tzedeka
(charity)."
"Eighteen rubles!" gasped poor Moshe. "But Rabbi, I
don't even have one ruble."
"Maybe you could sell something to get the money,"
replied the Baal Shem Tov.
"But Rabbi, look around. I don't have anything to sell,"
answered Reb Moshe.
"Why don't you sell the bedding," suggested the Baal
Shem Tov.
The followers were so embarrassed by this
conversation that they couldn't even look in the
direction of Reb Moshe or his wife.
Once Reb Moshe realized that the Baal Shem Tov
was serious about his request, he asked if he could
wait until the next morning to sell the bedding.
"Okay, we can wait until tomorrow, but then we must
be on our way," answered the Baal Shem Tov.
The next morning, Reb Moshe gathered up all the
pillows and blankets in the house and took them to
the marketplace. A few hours later, he returned with
exactly eighteen rubles. "Here Rabbi," he said, as he
hesitantly handed the money to the Baal Shem Tov.
With barely a thank you, the Baal Shem Tov took the
money. Then he got into the wagon and motioned for
the rest to get in also. As the wagon drove away, the
Baal Shem Tov yelled back to Reb Moshe, " G'd be
with you."
Moshe, his wife and children followed the wagon for a
short time, hoping that the Baal Shem Tov would stop
and return the eighteen rubles. But the Baal Shem
Tov never even looked back and the wagon soon
disappeared from their sight.
Reb Moshe returned to an empty house, a crying wife
and starving children. By this time it was late
afternoon and time to daven mincha (the afternoon
prayers). He was so upset he could barely speak. He
prayed as never before. Big tears streamed down his
face and he begged, "Dear Heavenly Father, please
provide us with a lot of food and money and give us
good health."
That night, the family, each with an empty stomach,
got into bed and huddled together to try and stay
warm. In the middle of the night, Moshe heard a loud
knocking at the door. "Who is it?" he asked fearfully.
"Moshke, let me in," said a peasant in a rough
voice. "I'm freezing and I want a glass of whiskey."
Our Reb Moshe had sold the last drink from his
whiskey barrel over a week before. But he was afraid
of the peasant so he quickly got up, opened the door
and him in. He told the peasant to sit down by the
stove and get warm while he got him a glass of
whiskey. Then he went into the next room and poured
a glass of water into the empty whiskey barrel. After
mixing the water around in the barrel, he poured it
back into a glass. "Here," he said, handing a full
glass of the "whiskey" to the peasant.
The peasant downed it in one gulp. "Uumm," he said
as he licked his lips. "It's been a long time and I really
needed a good, strong drink. And that drink was really
good and very strong. The only problem is that I don't
have any money so I'll have to pay you later."
Moshe, still sleepy said, "Sure, pay me when you
can." He was thinking, "What a day, what a night." As
soon as the peasant left, he lay down again and fell
back to sleep. A few hours later, he was again
awakened by a loud knocking at the door.
"Who is it?" he yelled out. It was the same peasant,
back for another glass of whiskey. Moshe served him
as before but this time the peasant reached into his
pocket and gave him a dirt covered coin. "Here, I don't
know how much it is worth but it should cover my
drinks."
Early the next morning, Moshe took the coin to the
market in the next town. He could hardly believe it
when he learned that the coin was worth enough to
pay for much more than the peasant had drunk.
When the peasant returned again the very next night
for another glass of whiskey, Moshe gave him a drink
and the change from the coin. The peasant was
astonished at Moshe's honesty and began to return
every night. It wasn't long before whiskey sales were
booming and Moshe was getting richer by the day. In
almost no time, the days of poverty were forgotten and
Moshe was involved in many other lucrative
businesses.
About a year later, the Baal Shem Tov and the very
same group of his followers happened to be passing
the little village where Reb Moshe lived. Instead of the
dilapidated house, there stood a stately mansion
surrounded by a number of smaller, but equally
beautiful buildings. The followers stared with open
mouths. "Rebbe, what happened?" they asked.
"All of this wealth was set aside for Reb Moshe on
Rosh Hashanah," explained the Baal Shem Tov. "But
he did not get it because he accepted his lot of poverty
without any complaints. As it says, 'He opens His
hand and fulfills the will of every living being.' (Psalm
145:16). So I had to take everything he owned from
him. When he was left without food or even his
bedding, he had no one to turn to but the Holy One,
Blessed be He. And from one sincere prayer
requesting his needs, G'd heard and opened His
hand to fulfill the requests of our friend Reb Moshe.
So the poor man of last year is a rich man today,
thanks to his fervent prayer."
And so it was.
Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir Cohn (Howard M. Cohn,
Patent Attorney) from a story in Devorin Araivim as
translated in STORIES OF THE BAAL SHEM TOV by
Y.Y. Klapholtz
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SEFER BAAL SHEM TOV
The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on the Torah
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The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on the Torah
If you sell something to your neighbor, or buy from
your neighbor's hand, you shall not wrong one
another. (Leviticus 25:14)
Everyday business transactions are also service [of
G-d] and Torah,1 for there are
many laws that
pertain
to them. For instance, the Mishnah says: "One who
exchanges a cow for a donkey.. . . "2 If a
person who
studies this piece of Torah for G-d's sake is
very
important to G-d, how much more so if he
actually
performs the act and exchanges a cow for a donkey,
conducting himself according to the Torah in this
case. This is surely considered an even greater form
of worship!
G-d created the entire world for the sake of
His honor,
and everything, from the smallest to the greatest,
operates only according to the Torah (except for the
nations, who are guided by the constellations). It is
possible to serve G-d and recognize His
wonders in
everything, and to perceive the Supernal Intellect in all.
Even a simple person who conducts himself
according to Torah, with "a just weight, a just
measure, a just scale,"3 also fulfills a
commandment. The Sages said: "One who sits and
does not sin is rewarded as if he performed a
mitzvah."4 A person who acts this way is
constantly
involved in Torah, even when he is busy with his
merchandise.
Ma'or Eynayim, Shabbat, p. 5.
1Not Torah study per se, but "Torah" in
the broadest
sense of the word, as the embodiment of
G-d's will in
the world.
2Bava Metziah 100a.
3Based upon Leviticus 19:36.
4Kiddushin 39b. Although the Talmud
concludes that
this refers to a person was given the opportunity to sin
yet he refrained from doing so, the Baal Shem Tov
interprets it to mean that even a person involved with
everyday activities is fulfilling the Torah, so long as he
does not sin.
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HEART OF PRAYER
The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on Prayer
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7-b9 Concentrate fully on saying the words of Torah
until you see the gleaming lights innately residing
within the words.
Concentrate fully on the words of prayer and
Torah that you are saying, until you see the lights
within the words which illuminate each other and the
numerous lights emerging from within them all. As is
said, "Light is sown for the righteous, and joy for the
upright in heart." (Psalms 97:11) The letters of Torah
are G-d's chambers into which He shines the
emanation of His light, as the Zohar states, "The Holy
One and the Torah are One." (Zohar 2:85b, 3:73a)
Put all your intention - your soul - into the words of
Torah. The conscious intention which you develop
and subsequently possess can only be found in the
soul. Known as deveikut, this is full divestment of
physicality. When you strip your soul of your body, so
that your soul clothes itself in the thoughts that you
speak, you will see many Supernal worlds. "The Holy
One, the Torah and Israel are all One."
Kesser Shem Tov, part 2 p. 4d
From
HEART OF PRAYER by Tzvi Meir
Cohn
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DIVINE LIGHT
The Mystical Light of the Baal Shem Tov
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51. Regarding praying for G-d's sake, the
Baal Shem Tov taught:
Prayers for physical needs, such as: "Heal
us and we shall be healed," "Bless us with a good
year," etc., (Shemonah Esrei) are like turning to a
father who longs to fulfill his son's desires, and to
make sure that he lacks nothing, even foolish things.
For it is the nature of one who is good to do good.
G-d's only thought is how to bestow material
goodness on the Congregation of Israel, who are
called His children. Prayer draws down sustenance
and sheaf (The flow of Divine life force into creation)
into all the worlds, even into the material worlds, to
satisfy G-d's longing. Thus, prayers on behalf
of G-d are accepted immediately. For heaven
scrutinizes the prayers you pray for yourself, to see if
they are worthy of being received. But when you pray
for G-d's sake, there is nothing to stop them.
Kedushas Levi, Likutim Shonim, p. 509
From DIVINE LIGHT by Tzvi Meir
Cohn
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KESER SHEM TOV
Anthology of the Teachings of the Baal Shem Tov
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Kst 88
The Baal Shem Tov taught:
Every human being is composed of the Ten Sephirot,
since every human being is a microcosm of Creation,
and whatever is present in the dimension of "world,"
is present in the dimensions of time and
soul,1 as
alluded to in the verse, "Mount Sinai was full of
smoke/ASHaN."2
The lowest level in man is connected with pain and
suffering, and corresponds to the Sephirah of
Malkhut, as the verse [alluding to Malkhut] says, "Her
feet descend to death."3 The Sephirot of
Netzach and
Hod are paralleled in man by the pillars of faith upon
which he stands, which establish one's firm faith in
G-d. The Sephirah of Yesod represents one
finding
more pleasure in serving G-d than from any
other
pleasure.4
1From here, and from the next
paragraph, we see
that this lesson is speaking about the human soul,
and not the human body. The Sephiroth are certainly
represented in the human body, but that is included in
the dimension of "world." Also, the specific "sites" of
the Sephirot within their traditional depiction are also
paralleled in the human body, as we also see from
the next paragraph, with lowest Sephirah, the Malkhut,
represented by the bottom of the feet, the Netzach and
Hod represented by the legs, and the Yesod
represented by the organs of pleasure.
2This Hebrew word is an acronym of
world (aolam),
time (shanah), and soul (nephesh). The reason why
these three levels of existence are alluded to with the
word smoke is because G-d reveals Himself
through
these three channels, which are in fact veils - "smoke
screens" - that conceal G-d as well as
manifest Him
(Mei HaShiloach VaYaytzay, V'hineh).
3Proverbs 5:5.
4Toldot Yaakov Yoseph, Lekh Lekha #4.
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