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TALES OF THE BAAL SHEM TOV
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BAAL SHEM TOV THE MATCHMAKER
". . . .Go and take a wife for my son. . . ." Genesis
24:4
And then there was the time that Reb Shmuel, a
wealthy man and ardent chossid of the Baal Shem
Tov came to visit his Rebbe, as he did several times
every year. Usually, his wife Chana encouraged these
visits. But this time her parting words were, "It is the
same story each time you go. You promise me that
you will ask the Rebbe to give us a blessing for
children. But you always return with some excuse like
he didn't pay you any attention or told you he'd see you
later or you forgot to mention it to him. Isn't it enough
that you give a fortune of charity to the needy at his
court and to the Rebbe himself for any cause he
suggests? Let the Rebbe do something for you just
once. If you don't come back this time with news that
he gave us a blessing to have children, I will divorce
you."
So the entire time Reb Shmuel was in Mezibush
visiting the Rebbe he had a heavy heart. How could
he ask the Baal Shem Tov for a blessing as his wife
required? Nevertheless, just before he left, he
apologetically asked the Rebbe for a blessing for
children.
The Baal Shem Tov looked at him for a long time.
Then he responded, "I will give you a blessing to have
a son. But I want you to know that you can only have a
child on the condition that you agree to lose all of your
wealth. Also, after the child begins school, you will
leave him with me to be raised in my house."
"What good does my money do me if there is no one
to inherit it afterwards?" he sighed. "Yes. I would
rather have a son than riches."
"But your wife must also agree to your choice. Go
home and tell her my offer."
Reb Shmuel rushed home with the good news. When
he told her the condition about losing wealth she
replied, "Shmuel, I agree with what you told the
Rebbe. I would rather have a son than our money. As
to the child being raised in the house of the Baal
Shem Tov, what more could one ask for their child?"
Reb Shmuel returned to the Baal Shem Tov and told
him he and his wife agreed to the conditions.
The Baal Shem Tov had additional instructions for
Shmuel. "When you return home, you will learn that a
huge fire has wiped you out financially both in
business and at home. Your wife will shortly become
pregnant and you will both be forced to wander with
the other homeless beggars from town to town in
search of food and a roof over your heads. When your
wife is in her last months of pregnancy, you can both
come to me. I will provide a room in my house until
she gives birth."
When Reb Shmuel returned home, he was not
surprised to learn that his house and business had
burned down. He wasn't the slightest bit upset,
because it was all foretold by the Baal Shem Tov.
Soon, his wife Chana discovered that she was
pregnant. By this time, they were already wandering
from village to village and begging from door to door.
When Chana was late in her pregnancy and found it
difficult to continue traveling, she remembered that
the Baal Shem Tov said they could move into his
house. "It's time we go to the Baal Shem Tov. He
promised to provide us with food and lodgings until I
gave birth."
When they arrived in Mezibush, the Baal Shem Tov
greeted them and took them to a room he had already
set aside. Then he told them, "Reb Shmuel you can
remain here with your wife until she has given birth
and the bris has been performed. Then you must
return to your travels and begging. Your wife can
remain here for the next three years until the child is
weaned and ready to begin school. Then I will send
her to you. The child will remain here with me and I
will raise him as my own son."
The couple was overjoyed to think that their son would
be raised by such a holy godfather and that he would
surely grow up to be a tzadik himself.
Several weeks passed and a son was born. He was
named Elimelech at the bris. Within the week,
Shmuel told Chana and little Elimelech good-bye and
set forth on his travels.
Three years passed swiftly and it was Chana's turn to
leave. She thanked the Baal Shem Tov for all his
kindness and went to join her husband.
Little Elimelech grew up in the Baal Shem Tov's
household. From the time he began school at three
years old, he showed amazing aptitude. His quick
and perceptive mind understood and retained
everything he was taught and before long he was
known as an iluy-genius. The years sped by and
Elimelech turned eighteen.
One day, the Baal Shem Tov called Elimelech into his
study for a serious talk. "You have now come of age. It
is time for you to think of marriage. I want you to go to
the small village on the other side of the river. Find the
sofer (scribe) that lives there and tell him that I sent
you and that I want you to marry his daughter. Then
tell him that I want him to come here to Mezibush
immediately so that we can draw up the engagement
contract."
Elimelech did not hesitate following his Rebbe's
instructions. He went straight to the village and was
directed a broken down, one room hut that was the
sofer's home. He knocked on the door and was
invited in by the sofer's wife. She explained that her
husband was at the synagogue and would soon
return.
Elimelech sat down to wait. He looked over the
meager surroundings. In one corner sat a young girl
of thirteen wearing a dress made of patches. She
was introduced to him as their only daughter Malka.
"Is this my intended bride? he wondered.
Elimelech knew that for the past year, his g-dfather,
the Baal Shem Tov, had received countless offers of
large dowries by prospective father-in-laws. But the
Baal Shem Tov had refused them all. Elimelech saw
that his intended wife obviously did not have riches.
But Elimelech would not question the Baal Shem
Tov's judgment in any way. He just sat patiently,
waiting for the sofer to return.
After an hour passed, the elderly sofer entered the
room. Elimelech stood up and explained that the Baal
Shem Tov had sent him to arrange a marriage with
his daughter. At first the sofer thought it was amusing
that the Baal Shem Tov would send someone to
marry his Malka. After all, she was only thirteen and
they didn't have any money for a wedding. None the
less, the sofer agreed to go to the Baal Shem Tov with
Elimelech.
The Baal Shem Tov greeted the sofer and Elimech
very warmly. They sat down and drew up the marriage
contract. Then the Baal Shem Tov gave the future
father-in-law enough money to outfit his daughter for
the coming wedding and the date was set.
With the Baal Shem Tov making the wedding,
everyone came. All of his Chassidim made sure not
to miss this joyous event celebrating the wedding of
the Baal Shem Tov's own G-d son. Hundreds of
people sat around the festive tables. Everyone could
not help wondering about the strange choice the Baal
Shem Tov had made for his adopted son. The bride
did not have wealth or a good family name. Why then
had the Rebbe over looked the wonderful offers he
had been made for Elimelech?
Right before the saying of the seven blessings after
the wedding meal, the Baal Shem Tov struck the table
with his hand for attention. "I have a story to tell you,
my honored guests."
And he began, "Many, many years ago, there lived a
mighty king. He and his queen had only one son that
they loved dearly. The boy was blessed with a brilliant
mind. The more he studied, the more he wanted to
know. He took an interest in every area of knowledge
and before long had learned all that his teachers
could offer. He sought out all the scholars in the
kingdom and before long there was nothing more
they could teach him.
The prince explained to his father the king, "I have
explored all the wisdom that can he learned in this
country." "I would like to travel to other countries and
learn knowledge taught there. Will you please give me
a carriage, a servant, and enough money for me to
take an extended journey?"
The king and queen soon saw it was useless arguing
with their son and they finally gave in to his request.
They outfitted him with a carriage, horses, a servant
and a chest full of money. Then they tearfully let him
go out into the world.
Starting with bordering country the young prince
visited the universities and houses of learning,
absorbing anything that was new to him. And so he
went from one country to the next and then the next.
Meanwhile his supply of funds was dwindling. When
his money was gone he was forced to sell his
servant, then his horses and finally, his royal carriage.
He was undaunted, however, for it was a small sum
to pay for knowledge. Finally, he found himself
penniless, walking along a snow covered road. He
was cold and hungry and was hoping for a sign of
civilization, for someone who might have pity on him
and take him in for the night.
The prince walked on for three days, deeper into a
thick forest, not meeting a soul all the while. When he
was at the end of his endurance, he raised his eyes
heavenward and exclaimed, "I firmly believe in the
Creator of heaven and earth. It is He Who watches
over me and guides my steps. Only He can save me
now from death. Please, dear G-d, listen to
my prayer and let me live."
Suddenly, he saw a light flickering in the
distance. "Who can possibly be living in the midst of
this desolate forest?" he wondered. "Most probably
some robbers. But even they may have some pity
upon a freezing, starving harmless young man." The
prince mustered up his last ounce of strength and
made it to the house. He knocked weakly on the door.
It was immediately opened by an old man who bade
the prince come in. The prince told him his sad tale
and begged for a warm drink. The old man bustled
about preparing a warm meal which the prince
attacked with much gusto. When he had eaten his fill,
he was given a place to sleep.
The prince lay down and sighed in utter contentment
and was about to fall asleep in utter exhaustion.
Having provided for his guest, the old man opened up
a large volume of Talmud and began to study in a
singsong chant, soon becoming oblivious to his
surroundings. The prince, who had been about to fall
asleep, felt his fatigue melt away. After all the years he
had spent in study, all the countries he had visited
and all the languages he had learned, he had never
come across anything like what the old man was
studying. His mind quickened with interest and he
jumped out of bed.
"What is that you are studying?" he asked his host
eagerly.
"I am learning the Torah which was given to my
people at Mount Sinai," the old man explained briefly.
"Please, teach me. I want to learn Torah too," the
prince begged.
"I cannot teach you Torah," the old Jew
explained. "You are not Jewish."
"Then let me convert. I would like to become a Jew
right now," said the prince.
"But that is impossible. You must wait at least until
tomorrow," the Jew smiled at his
eagerness. "Tomorrow I will call together a quorum of
men. Then you can be circumcised and purify yourself
in the mikveh. Afterwards you can begin to study
Torah."
The prince went back to bed, disappointed. He found
that he was too excited to fall asleep and he stayed
awake that entire night in anticipation of his
conversion.
"How could the old man, living in a deep forest,
manage to round up a minyan?" the Baal Shem Tov
asked his listeners. "I will tell you who the nine other
men were. They were none other than our seven
Shepherds - Avraham, Yitchak, Yakov, Yosef, Moshe,
Aharon and King David. They were joined by two of
Yakov's sons."
After the circumcision was performed, the prince went
into a mikveh and he was pronounced a Jew. All the
guests sat down to a festive meal after which they
disappeared into the forest.
The young prince did not wait until he was healed. He
launched into the study of aleph bais, which he
mastered with ease, and then into Chumash,
Mishnah and before long was deep into Talmud. The
prince did not approach his Jewish studies as he had
pursued science and philosophy in the secular world.
The old Jew inculcated him with a fear of G-d
and piety; the more he learned, the more pious and
righteous he became. By the year's end, the prince
had become an accomplished Torah scholar, well
versed in all the aspects of Jewish knowledge.
When the old man felt secure that he would remain
thus, he called the young man to him. "The time has
come," he said, "for you to return home to your
parents, the king and queen. I have obtained your
horses and carriage and your servant as well. Take
them and go home to assume the throne. You need
not give up your Jewish way of life. You must remain
hidden a righteous man whose greatness is not a
recognized by others."
It was hard for the prince to leave this utopian way of
life, delving into the study he loved, but he heeded his
mentor and returned home. His father had lost hope
of ever being reunited with his only beloved son.
When he saw him standing before his very eyes, he
could not contain his joy.
The young prince had one request to make of his
father. "Having traveled extensively all around the
world," he explained, "I have changed my mode of
living. I need my own residence. Could I have my own
palace built to my requirements?" There was nothing
that the elderly king would not do for his son and this
request was a mere trifle. The king ordered a team of
workers to follow the prince's own blueprint and the
latter soon had a royal residence of his own where he
could do what he wanted without being observed by
curious eyes.
The prince now arranged for ten Torah scholars and
their families to come and inhabit permanent quarters
within the palace. He also maintained a staff of his
own mohel and shochet. And no one outside the
palace walls was aware that the young prince was
actually a practicing Jew.
At this time, the old king learned that a neighboring
monarch was preparing to wage war against him.
Having lived all his life in peace, the old king was
afraid of battle and untutored in the strategies of war.
He called his wise son to him, seeking his advice.
"You have nothing to fear, dear father," the prince
hastened to reassure the king. "I will lead our people
in battle. I trust that some of my accumulated wisdom
will be of use to us."
The young prince fought bravely and cleverly, easily
winning an important victory for his people. When the
vanquished king was brought before the prince, he
had one request to make of the victor. 'I am at your
mercy now. My land and everything that I own is yours.
Do me the great kindness of taking my daughter for a
wife so that you can both rule our two countries
together."
He thought about the suggestion and then said, "I
would like to speak to the princess first." He was
taken to the princess and asked to talk to her alone. "I
am a Jew," the prince confessed to her. "I live in my
own palace and keep all the practices and customs of
the Jews. If you wish to marry me, you must agree to
accept my way of life and become a Jewess yourself."
The princess looked at the handsome young
prince
and thought of the kingdom he was offering her. Her
choice was obvious. When he heard her answer, the
prince instructed the young girl to go to a Jewish
settlement where she could be properly converted
and learn the laws that pertained to her new role as
wife and future Jewish mother. The marriage was
held upon her return. The royal couple went to live in
the prince's palace where they could practice their
Judaism in privacy. They lived out their days in
modesty and piety, rearing children that became
Torah scholars. And they were always mindful of their
Jewish brethren, helping whenever the opportunity
offered.
When the two converts arrived at the
heavenly
court, it was assumed that they would be delegated to
Gan Eden, having practiced all the mitzvos religiously
for all of their converted lives as exemplary Jews.
But
just as they were being led to their place, a
prosecuting angel rushed up. "Wait!" he
shouted. "These two people are not eligible for Gan
Eden. They were born and lived many years of their
life as non-Jews. It is not fitting that they be admitted
to the dwelling place of the most righteous tzadikim."
The heavenly court was forced to admit that
the angel
had a point. There was only one thing to do; that was
to send the two souls down to earth once again to
make amends for their shortcoming. In their new life
on earth they would be born as Jews.
"And
now you
understand, most honored guests," the Baal Shem
Tov concluded, "why our bride and groom make such
a fitting match. They are none other than the king and
queen of our story. Even their names - Elimelech and
Malka - point to that. And so, chosson and callah, we
wish you many happy years together in this life as in
the world-to-come. Mazel Tov!"
And so it was.
Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaCohane (Howard M.
Cohn, Patent Attorney) from a story found in Sipurim
Nifloim 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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Now, I came this day to the well... (Genesis 24:42)
"Today I left (Haran) and today I arrived." From here
[we learn that] the way was shortened for
him.1 Rabbi
Eliezer said, "The common talk of the servants of the
Forefathers is better than the Torah of their
descendents."2 (Rashi) This very verse
is the source
of the Divine Name that causes kefitzas haderech.
This is the meaning of: "'Today I left (Haran) and today
I arrived.' From here, the way was shortened for him."
From here precisely! From these very words that he
said! This is the meaning of "The common talk of the
servants of the Forefathers is better than the Torah of
their descendents." For their words hint to wondrous
mysteries and Unifications to shorten the way, which
is not true of their descendents, even by means of the
Torah they study.
Avodas Yisroel, Chayeh Sarah
1Kefitzat Haderech - a miraculous
shortening of a
journey, in which great distances are covered in a
short amount of time.
2Eliezer relates the events surrounding
his meeting
with Rivkah several times in great detail. This is the
common talk of the servants of the Forefathers. In
other chapters, however, the Torah is so sparse with
words that dozens of laws must be derived from the
nuances of a single verse, as the Talmud states
concerning the laws of the Shabbat, that they are like
mountains hanging by hairs; i.e. huge amounts of
laws are derived from very few words.
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi Dr. Eliezer
Shore
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HEART OF PRAYER
The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on Prayer
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5.c4 The real intention of prayer is for their Supernal,
spiritual roots.
The Baal Shem Tov taught:
The real intention of prayer for such things as
livelihood or rain, are not for these physical things, but
for their Supernal, spiritual roots. Physicality is the
external aspect of our requests; whereas the inner
aspect is the spiritual.
Shemen Sasson, Psalms 86
Translation
and
Commentary by Rabbi Dr.
Eliezer Shore
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DIVINE LIGHT
The Mystical Light of the Baal Shem Tov
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27. The Baal Shem Tov taught:
Throughout the generations, the main work of
Tzaddikim such as Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the
Arizal, and the Baal Shem Tov and his disciples, was
to bind the souls of the Jewish people to their spiritual
roots, and to remove the partitions and physical
desires that separated them from G-d. In this
way, their souls would become bound to their spiritual
roots to such an extent that they would not become
detached. If this were accomplished, the Jewish
people would fear G-d, even in private, and
not transgress His will, even to the slightest degree.
The Tzaddikim bind their souls to G-d by
stripping themselves of their physicality and
completely transcending their corporeality. They bind
their souls to the light of the Infinite. By such means,
they lift up the souls of the Jewish people with them,
and bind them to their roots.
However, as the Baal Shem Tov said, when the
Tzaddikim attached their own souls to their supernal
root, they had to be careful not to nullify their own
existence. Otherwise, they would not be able to return
to their physicality. They had to remain attached to
G-d in such a way, that even when they were
busy with physical and mundane activities, their
thoughts were not separate from the Creator. Thus,
even when they were involved in the material world,
their intention was to serve G-d. This is
known as serving G-d in the aspect of
smallness.
Ma'or VaShemesh, Pinchas
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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Kst 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, and one must force oneself by visualizing
that [G-d] is [now holding Mount Sinai over his
head and] forcing him.2
1 Exodus 24:7.
2 This
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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