"Do not fear them, for it is G-d, your G-d, who is fighting for you." Devarim 3:22

THE MAGIC MIRROR

         And it happened that once while traveling, Rabbi Schneur Zalman (known as the Alter Rebbe) was in a city when a house caught on fire. When the Alter Rebbe arrived at the scene of the fire, a group of Russian soldiers were trying unsuccessfully to extinguish it. The Rebbe stood in front of the blazing house, leaned on his cane and gazed for a few moments into the fire. Suddenly, the fire died down until the fire was easily extinguished.

The exhausted soldiers could barely believe their eyes. They ran to report the astonishing event to their General. After hearing their story, he sent a group of soldiers to ask the Rabbi to come and see him. When the Alter Rebbe arrived, the General asked him, "Are you any relation to the Jewish holy man known as the Baal Shem Tov?"        

The Rebbe replied, "Sir, while I'm not a blood relative, I consider myself to be his spiritual grandson because I am a disciple of the Maggid of Mezritch, the Baal Shem Tov's successor. Why do you ask?"

"When I heard how the fire was brought under control after you gazed at it for a few moments, it reminded me of a story that happened to my father."

"My father was also a general. Once he was stationed with his troops in the village of Mezibush. At that time, my father was deeply troubled because many weeks had passed since he had received a letter from his wife. He started to have all kinds of bad thoughts. This caused him to be in a very bad mood which he took out on his troops. One of his officers suggested that he should seek the advice of a local Jewish holy man, known as the Baal Shem Tov, who was reputed to be a miracle worker. 'Maybe he'll be able to tell you some news about your wife,' said the officer.

"My father, although still in a foul mood, agreed and sent this very officer to arrange a meeting between him and the Baal Shem Tov. Much to my father's surprise, the gabbai of the Baal Shem Tov told the officer that the Baal Shem Tov refused to see him. So my father sent a higher ranked officer, but the Baal Shem Tov again refused to see him. By this time, my father was infuriated that this simple Rabbi refused to see his officers and of course himself, the commanding officer, a General no less. My father knew about Jewish customs and holidays. At that time, it was right before Passover. So he sent another officer to relay the threat to the Baal Shem Tov that if he did not grant him an interview, he, being the General, would quarter his troops in Jewish homes. This would cause bread and even non-kosher food to be brought into the Jewish homes just before Passover."

"The threat worked and the Baal Shem Tov sent back a message inviting the General, my father, to his home. When my father arrived, he entered a waiting room and saw the Baal Shem Tov, nthrough an open doorway, sitting in his study. He was absorbed in a book which my father later found out was a kabbalistic book called the Zohar. However, before my father even knocked on the door to the study, his attention was caught by a large mirror on the wall in the waiting room."

"He went over to the mirror to adjust his clothes before meeting the Rabbi. When he looked into the mirror, to his astonishment, he saw the road leading to his own city, instead of his own reflection. As he watched the road, the scene changed and he saw his own house. Suddenly he could see into his house. There his wife was sitting at a table and writing a letter to him. He was able to clearly see the letter. She was writing an apology for having not written sooner. She explained that it was due to her difficult pregnancy and delivery of a baby boy. Everything was fine."

"My father was overwhelmed by the vision in the mirror. When he met with the Baal Shem Tov, he thanked him profusely. A few days later, he received a letter from his wife, identical to what he had seen in the mirror. My father then wrote down the whole story in his personal diary."

"I," concluded the General to Rabbi Schneur Zalman, "am the son whose birth was announced in that letter! Also, I always carry with me the diary in which my father recorded this event."

And so it was.
 

Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaCohane Cohn from a story found in SIPUREI CHASSIDIM and translated in STORIES OF THE BAAL SHEM TOV by Y.Y. Klapholtz.

The Baal Shem Tov Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, uses emails, teleclasses and other material to spread and publicize the Torah of the Baal Shem Tov throughout the world. Please visit us at www.baalshemtov.com to learn more about the Baal Shem Tov and the work of the Foundation.

The goal of the Foundation is to hasten the imminent coming of the Moshiach (Messiah) by acting on the answer of the Moshiach to the Baal Shem Tov's question: 'When are you coming Master?' (The Moshiach answered) "When your teachings have become well-known and revealed throughout the world, and when your well springs have spread outwards, imparting to others what I have taught you, so that they too will be able to perform contemplative unifications and ascents of the soul..." [quoted from a letter from the Baal Shem Tov to his brother-in-law Rabbi Gershon Kitover.]

One of the major projects of the Baal Shem Tov Foundation is the World Wide Mezuzah Campaign whose goal is to insure that every Jewish person in the world has a kosher Mezuzah attached to the doorpost of their home. Please visit www.mezuzah.net for more information.

Tzvi Meir is always available for questions and to support your work in this area.

Tzvi Meir Cohn (Howard M. Cohn, Patent Attorney)
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30195 Chagrin Boulevard

Cleveland, OH 44124
800-613-0955
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