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TALES OF THE BAAL SHEM TOV
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COCK-A-DOODLE-DO!
And then there was the time that an amazing event
occurred with a simple boy that lived In a small village
near the holy community of Mezibush (the home of
Israel Baal Shem Tom). He had only received a basic
Jewish education and could barely read the "aleph
bais" (the Hebrew alphabet). He had left cheder
(school) at a young age to help his father care for the
small farm they leased from the local Poritz (the
landowner and nobleman). The boy would care for the
few animals they
had one old cow and a few chickens.
The boy had one, strange skill: He would sing to his
chickens as he went about his chores in the chicken-
coop, and the chickens would always lay an
abundance of eggs-more than any other chickens on
the surrounding farms. Everyone who passed by
could hear his "cock-a-doodle-do".
When the boy reached the age of twelve, his father
said: "My son, you are old enough to go with me to
Mezibush for the high holidays, and to pray at the
shule (synagogue) of the Holy Rabbi Yisrael (the Baal
Shem Tov)."
Several days before Yom Kippur, the man and his son
embarked on their journey with a group traveling from
their village to Mezibush. They arrived just in time to
settle in at the local inn, immerse in the mikveh and
rush to the Baal Shem Tov's shule for Kol Nidrei.
The shule was packed. People stood in silent thought,
the men in their white kittels (traditional white robe
and burial shroud for the
High Holidays) and Talleisim (prayer shawl), and the
women in their finest clothes. The boy was deeply
affected by the solemnity of the scene.
All stood in preparation for the holy Day of Judgment
when the fate of each man is decided. Each person
sought forgiveness for past transgressions and to be
inscribed in the Book of Life for a New Year of health,
happiness, healthy children and prosperity.
Father and son stood shoulder to shoulder in the
crowded shule. The boy stood staring into his
machzor (holiday prayer book), but could hardly read a
word. He stood watching the chazzan lead the prayers
as tears streamed down his cheeks. All around him
people stood with their eyes closed in prayer.
As the sky darkened on that night of Kol Nidrei, the
Baal Shem Tov realized that there was a judgment in
Heaven against the People of Israel.
That night, and the whole next day of Yom Kippur, the
Baal Shem Tov stood in deep prayer and mediation.
The boy felt that something was wrong. The
chassidim gathered about in grave concern as their
Rebbe stood motionless at his shtender (prayer
stand). Word had spread that something was amiss,
and people began to weep with a feeling of dread.
The boy turned to his father and asked, "Why is
everyone so upset and worried?"
But his father only answered with a "Shah!" (Be
quiet!). - "We are all praying that G-d should
have
mercy on us!"
The boy couldn't take it! Suddenly, without thinking, he
took a deep breath and burst out as loudly as he
could, "Cock-a-doodle-do! G-d have mercy on
us!"
The entire congregation was horrified! The men yelled
angrily, "Keep quiet you fool!" and the women
mumbled among themselves.
Somebody asked the boy to leave the shule, but he
refused. "I am a Jew! Where should I go on Yom
Kippur?"
At that moment, the Baal Shem Tov stirred. He
stepped back three steps indicating the completion of
his silent prayer, and began to sing a joyful melody.
Finally, the Shofar blew and the holy day of Yom
Kippur ended.
The Baal Shem Tov's face was radiant. As he walked
from the shule wishing everyone well, he paused in
front of the young boy, and nodded with a broad, warm
smile.
That night, as he sat at the festive meal with his close
followers, the Baal Shem Tov spoke of a grave threat
that hung over the community from the moment the
holy day began. "I tried my best to intercede, but the
Heavenly Court would not hear my arguments. But just
as the sentence was about to be sealed, a strange
sound rang out throughout the Heavens: 'Cock-a-
doodle-do! G-d have mercy on us!' The Heavenly Court
was so pleased with this prayer that came from the
depths of a simple Jewish soul that, thank
G-d, the
decree against our community was annulled."
And so it was.
Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaCohane (Howard M.
Cohn, Patent Attorney) from a story found in
TREASURY OF CHASSIDIC TALES ON THE
FESTIVALS by Rabbi S.Y. Zevin Divrei Chassidim
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SEFER BAAL SHEM TOV
The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on the Torah
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The Importance of Pacing Oneself
Do not overdo the recitation of Psalms before prayer,
so as not to tire yourself out to the extent that you
would not be able to fulfill the essential daily prayer
obligation - the Prayer Psalms of Pesukei d'Zimra, the
recitation of the Sh'ma, and the Amidah with proper
Devekut (devotional concentration), on account of your
energy having been spent before prayer with [pious]
preparations.
Rather, begin the actual prayer
with
Devekut, and if [at the end of the 'formal' prayer]
G-d
grants you additional strength, then recite [additional]
Psalms or the Song of Songs,1 with
Devekut. So too
on Yom Kippur before the final Neilah Prayer, pace
yourself by reciting the Machzor without such great
concentration2 so that afterwards you
can pray3 with
great devotional concentration [Devekut].
1Perhaps this refers to the prayer-time at
the entry of
the Shabbat.
2It is interesting to note in this
connection that in the
Lurianic contemplative practices for Yom Kippur the
period of the Minchah prayer is one of recapitulation,
getting ready for the final surge of theurgic 'progress'
to take place during the Neilah prayer.
3The most important Neilah Prayer
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.b3 "To you, G-d, is kindness; for You repay
each
man according to his deeds."1 The
questions on this verse are well known, but it can be
explained according to something the Baal Shem Tov
once said. There was once a great accusation against
Israel on Yom Kippur. The Accusing Angel was not
critical of the wicked, but the G-d-fearing, who
pray each day in synagogue. On their way to pray at
the synagogue, they may see a wagon load of wood
for sale and stop to bargain over the price. Thus, they
come late to services and miss Barchu and Kedusha
all for the small discount they receive from the seller.
None of the defending angels
could refute this, but the Baal Shem Tov came to
Israel's defense. True, he said, that a good deed can
be lost for some trifling amount before it is done;
however, after it has been fulfilled, a Jewish person
would not sell it for the greatest fortune, even the
foolhardiest of them all.
With this argument, he sweetened the
harsh judgments. This is the meaning of, "To you,
G-d, is kindness; for You repay each man
according to his deeds." That is, according to the love
the person has for the commandment after they
perform it, not necessarily before, is their reward.
Degel Machane Reuven 59
1Psalms 62:13
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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AND then there was the time, on the eve of Yom
Kippur, that the gabboim1 of the Baal
Shem Tov's synagogue wanted to prohibit the poor
people from sitting with their begging bowls in the
synagogue because the noise disturbed the prayers.
The Baal Shem Tov told the gabboim not to stop the
beggars. He related that once, the
kelipos2 joined forces to overcome the
side of holiness. But because of the rattling of the
coins in the begging bowls on the eve of Yom Kippur,
they were completely dispersed.
Midrash Pinchas
HaChadash 55
1Sextants
2Impure
spiritual forces
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 35
The Baal Shem Tov taught:
"Once, the king of beasts, the lion, became enraged
with his subjects. The beasts gathered together to
decide how to appease him. The fox said that he
would lead them to the lion, since he knew three
hundred parables with which to appease the lion.
They all followed the fox. But little by little, as
they got
closer to the lion, the fox said that he had forgotten a
portion of his parables. And by the time they reached
the lion, he had forgotten everything. Therefore, the fox
said, each one should approach the king and
appease him to the best of his abilities."
The fox's intention from the beginning, though, was
only that they all follow him and surrender to the king,
which is why he initially claimed that he could
appease him.
Similarly, the Baal Shem Tov urged people not to rely
on the prayers of the prayer leader on the Days of Awe,
but that each individual should pray for himself.
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi
Yehoshua Starrett
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