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ORIGINS OF THE BAAL SHEM TOV
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OBST 28
In the last weeks selection, Reb Adam Baal Shem Tov traveled to help an unknown Jew from being murdered.
After an hour, the rabbi, Reb Adam Baal Shem again came to the merchant and said, "Beware. You have only three hours to live."
The merchant just laughed in his face and went over to his group to tell them the strange message and laugh over it together.
The merchant stood in the marketplace discussing his business when again Reb Adam appeared before him for the third time with the warning, "An hour ago I spoke to you but you just laughed. Know that in another two hours you will laugh no longer!"
At these words the merchant's heart contracted with fear. He went over to his friends and told them of his fear.
"Why didn't you grab the man," they told him. "He may want to murder you." So the merchant decided that when the stranger came again he would hold on to him and not let him go until he revealed everything and he would be convinced that his life was in danger.
After another hour Reb Adam appeared again and said, "In another hour you will depart from this world." The merchant quickly grasped him firmly and shouted, "I refuse to let go of you until you tell me who you are, and who is plotting to kill me!"
Reb Yoel answered, "You are right, I will tell you. There is a heinous plot to kill you. I have seen through a holy vision that you will be killed guiltlessly, and have come to save you."
"If that is so," said the merchant, "tell me quickly, what am I to do?"
Reb Adam answered, "Follow me!"
The merchant stood petrified but soon recovered sufficiently and agreed, "Lead me and I will follow you."
To be continued. . . . . .
Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaCohane (Howard M. Cohn, Patent Attorney) from a story in Moroim Gdolim as translated in Tales of the Baal Shem Tov by Y.Y. Klapholtz.
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THE BURNING OF THE TORAH
And then there was the time that the Satan, tormented as he saw Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov doing good on earth, schemed to overcome the Master. He called all the angels of darkness about him and said, "This is my plan:
"I will station dark angels on all the roads and pathways that lead to heaven. And whenever and wherever a prayer rises seeking to go upward and enter the Gates of Heaven, we'll seize it and prevent it from reaching the Gates. Both those prayers that have already wandered many years in limbo, as well as the new prayers shall be prevented from arriving. And thus, no prayers will come before the Throne of G-d.
"When many days shall have passed with not a single prayer appearing before the Throne, I'll go up to G-d and say, 'Look how your people have deserted you. They no longer pray to you. Even your favorite, your devoted Rabbi Yisrael, has ceased to worship you. Take back your wisdom from Rabbi Israel, and remove Your Torah from his followers!' "
At once the Satan's angels of evil rushed out to all the roads that led to the Heavenly Gates. No path was left unguarded. No prayer could pass.
As the prayers came upward, the evil angels seized them.Since they could not kill the prayers, they flung them into chaos. The space before the Heavenly Gates was filled with wounded prayers that stumbled in search of their way.
Even on Friday, right before Shabbos, when the prayers were very strong and many prayers were able to make their way to the Gates of Heaven, the dark angels were still able to stop them and not allow them to enter.
Weeks went by, and no prayers came up to the Throne.
Then Satan appeared before G-d and said, "Take away the Torah from the Jews."
G-d answered, "I'll give them until the Day of Atonement to pray to Me."
But Satan was impatient. "Send out the command to remove the Torah at once!" he said, "Though it wouldn't be done until Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement."
G-d gave issued the terrible decree.
At the same time, on earth, the Archbishop issued a proclamation to all his bishops. "In ten days time," he said, "Take the books and scrolls of Torah from the synagogues and homes of the Jews and heap them into piles for burning."
The Bishop of Kamenitz-Podolsky was the most zealous to follow the commands of the Archbishop. He sent his priests into all the houses of the Jews to collect all of the books and scrolls. The Bishop of Lemberg was also zealous in the same way. And all of the other bishops did as they had been commanded to do.
The tenth day would be the Day of Atonement. And on that day, in every corner of the land, the books and scrolls of Torah would burn.
When the books and scrolls of Torah began to be taken from the Jews, the Baal Shem Tov immediately knew that Satan was behind this terrible scheme. Yet he could not find out what strange evil the Satan had done, and he did not know how to battle against it.
Each day, the suffering and the horror among the Jews became greater. As the books of Torah were wrenched from their arms, they wept and beat themselves as mothers whose babes are torn from their arms. With tears they said, "On Yom Kippur, we will go into the flames with our Torah! "
Fasting, and sleepless, night and day the Baal Shem Tov prayed for the Jewish people. Day and night he sent mighty prayers towards Heaven on powerful wings and at incredible speed. But now , the Satan himself was on guard and caught the Baal Shem's prayers and prevented them from entering the Gates of Heaven.
The heart of the Baal Shem was in severe pain.
At last came the Day of Atonement.
Rabbi Yisrael went into the synagogue to hold the prayer service. At his side stood Rabbi Jacob.
And all those who were in the synagogue saw the terrible struggle on the face of the Baal Shem Tov. Still they believed in the power of the Master and said among themselves, "The Rebbe will save us like he always does."
When the time came for the Kol Nidre prayer, Rabbi Yisrael lifted his voice. All who listened were fbrought to great sorrow and tears. Everyone was trying to do Teshuvah.
In the service of the lamentations, it was the custom for Rabbi Jacob to read each verse aloud, then Rabbi Yisrael would repeat the verse after him. And so they began the lamentations.
But when Rabbi Jacob read out the verse, "Open the Portals of Heaven!" there was no sound from Rabbi Yisrael. Rabbi Jacob waited. The synagogue was completely silent. Still Rabbi Yisrael remained silent. Rabbi Jacob repeated, "Open the Portals of Heaven!" But still the Rebbe did not utter a word.
Then, in that deadly silence, Rabbi Yisrael threw himself down and beat his head against the ground. And out of him arose a cry like the roar of a dying lion.
For two hours Rabbi Yisrael remained upon the ground while his body quivered.
Those who were in the house of prayer could not take their eyes from him; they did not dare to approach him, but watched in silence.
At last Rabbi Yisrael got up. His face was beaming and he announced in loud joyful voice, "The Portals of Heaven are open! "
With that, he quickly ended the service.
Long afterward, what he had done during the two hours when he lay with his head against the ground became known.
He had gone up to the Palace of the Eternal and stood by the greatest of Gates that lead directly to the Throne of G-d. There, huddled before the Gate, he had found hundreds and thousands of prayers. Some of them were maimed, some lay gasping as though they had just ended a terrible struggle, some were emaciated and old, some were blind from wandering in darkness.
"What are you waiting for!" asked the Baal Shem Tov to the multitude of prayers. "Why don't you go in, and approach the Throne of the Almighty?"
They ansered in unison, "Until this moment, the angels of darkness were on guard, and would not let us approach the Gate. But when they saw you coming, they fled. Now we are waiting for your prayer to take us through the Heavenly Gate."
"I will take you in," said the Baal Shem Tov.
But just at the moment when he attempted to pass through the Gate, the army of Evil angels gathered strength and pushed the Gate closed. Then the Satan himself came out and hung a great lock upon the great Gate. In fact, the Gate is as big as the world and the lock was as big as a city.
The Baal Shem went up to the lock and walked around it, seeking some crack through which he break it open so that he could open the Gates and lead the prayers through. But the lock was of solid steel, and there was no crack anywhere.
The road to the Throne of the Amighty was closed.
But the Baal Shem did not despair because for each of us on earth there lives a being in heaven. And that being is exactly as we are.
Into that nether region of heaven the way was open and Rabbi Yisrael went in there, and sought out his counterpart, who was the Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov of Heaven.
And Rabbi Yisrael of the earth said to him, "What shall I do, to bring the prayers before the Almighty? "
Rabbi Israel of Heaven replied, "There is only one thing to do. Let us go to the palace of Messiah."
They came to the palace where Messiah sits awaiting the day when he may come down to earth.
And as soon as the Baal Shem Tov entered, the Messiah cried out to him, "Be joyousl I will help you!" And he gave the Baal Shem a token.
The Baal Shem Tov took the token, and went back to the Gates that were locked. Holding the token before the lock, the lock fell away and the Gates opened wide as the earth is large. And immediately, all the prayers entered and went straight to the Throne of the Holy One blessed be He.
Beginning then, a surge of joy filled the heavens, and the good angels sang out loud and strong, while the dark angels crept away to the farthest corners of chaos.
In that very moment, the Bishop of Kamenitz-Podolsky kindled a fire on earth and stood by it. At his side was a great pile of Hebrew books, scrolls and tractates of the Talmud.
The Bishop of Kamenitz-Podolsky took a tractate of the Talmud, and hurled it into the fire. It immediately caught fire and began to burn. The Bishop took another book, and hurled it into the flames. The flames rose even higher. Again and again the Bishop hurled volume after volume of the Talmud into the flames. But when he had thrown seven tractates into the flames, and was about to throw the eighth, his hand was seized with a trembling, and then his whole body was seized with shaking, and he fell down in an epileptic fit.
All of the large crowd of people standing by him shivered with terror, and ran away. The fire immediatrely died down, and went out.
The news of this miraculous evfent spread swiftly. Then all the other bishops who had built pyres of holy books for burning were frightened, fearing that the curse of the Baal Shem Tov would come upon them, and they too would be seized with horrible spasms. They each ran away leaving the books safe.
Thus the Talmud was saved for the Jews on the Day of Atonement.
And so it was.
Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir Cohn from a story in CLASSIC CHASSIDIC TALES by Meyer Levin
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SEFER BAAL SHEM TOV
The Teachings Of The Baal Shem Tov On Prayer
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And Moses said to Aharon: Draw near to the altar . . . (Leviticus 9:7)
Rashi comments that Aharon was ashamed and afraid to draw near to the altar.1 Moses therefore said to him, "Why are you ashamed? You were chosen for this."2
This is a surprising explanation. Just because he was chosen doesn't mean that he should not be ashamed.
Rather, I heard from my grandfather [the Baal Shem Tov] this explanation: [Moses said,] "You were chosen because you feel fear and shame before G-d,"3 for "The sacrifices of G-d are a broken spirit" (Psalms 51:19).4
This idea has also been mentioned in the writings of the Arizal.5
Degel Machane Ephraim, Shemini
1Because of his involvement in the making of the Golden Calf.
2I.e., to serve G-d in the Sanctuary.
3That is, when Moses said, "You were chosen for this," he meant, "You where chosen because of this."
4I.e., because Aharon was humble, he merited offering sacrifices to G-d.
5The Arizal writes (Likutey Torah on this verse): "Because you have the qualities of humility and shame, you were chosen over your fellows to be the Kohen." R. Tzadok HaKohen writes that it was the very shame Aharon felt over having made the Golden Calf that made him worthy of being chosen as Kohen Gadol; for every fall can lead a person rise in the very area he stumbled, to the opposite extreme.
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DIVINE LIGHT
The Mystical Light Of The Baal Shem Tov
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26. Reb Yitzchak of Skver related that one Simchas Torah evening the Baal Shem Tov was dancing among his Chassidim with a Sefer Torah in his arms. He gave the sacred scroll to one of his disciples to hold as he danced alone.
Another disciple, Reb Isaac, saw this and remarked, "Our holy Rebbe gave the tangible scroll away while he himself kept the spiritual scroll."
The Baal Shem Tov heard this and exclaimed, "I am surprised that Reb Isaac was able to observe and understand this!"
Sipurei Baal Shem Tov
From DIVINE LIGHT by Tzvi Meir Cohn
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HEART OF PRAYER
Anthology of the Teachings of the Baal Shem Tov on Prayer
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9-d5 The foreign thoughts during each day's prayers come to a person in order to be repaired and uplifted.
The Arizal writes that until the coming of Moshiach, no two prayers will ever be the same. This is the meaning of, "If a person makes his prayers fixed, they are not a supplication."1
This can be demonstrated by observing the foreign thoughts one has during prayer. These derive from the Breaking of the Vessels and the 288 sparks that a person must extract each day.2 They come to a person in order to be repaired and uplifted. Thus, the foreign thoughts of each day are different.
If a person has wanton thoughts, he should attach them to their root in Chesed,3 thereby uplifting them. This is the inner meaning of the verse, "If a man takes his sister...it is disgraceful (chesed)." Similarly, idolatrous thoughts blemish the beauty of Israel.4
Toldos Yaakov Yosef, Vayakhel
1Talmud Berachot 18b
2 In the primordial Shattering of the Vessels, 288 sparks of holiness fell into the lower worlds. Fragments of these sparks are uplifted each day through Torah study and service of G-d. When all of the sparks have been redeemed, the Messianic Era will arrive.
3Leviticus 20:17
4See Lamentation 2:1. This is a reference to Tiferet. Idolatry is a fallen manifestation of this attribute in that the idol becomes a focus of adoration.
HEART OF PRAYER by Tzvi Meir
Cohn
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KESER SHEM TOV
An anthology of Teachings on the Torah by the Baal Shem Tov
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Kst 68
The Baal Shem Tov taught:
"What is the difference between the disciples of our forefather Abraham and the disciples of Bilaam?"1
The question here is obvious. The answer is that even the disciples of Abraham possess the trait of a proud spirit, and the opposite is also true, that the disciples of Bilaam possess the trait of a humble spirit. The only difference is that Bilaam's disciples use their traits in material matters, and Abraham's disciples use their traits in spiritual issues. That is, the disciples of Abraham elevate their hearts in G-d's service with their proud spirit and aspire to perform great deeds, while the disciples of Bilaam perceive themselves as unworthy with their humble spirit and absolve themselves from fulfilling G-d's will.2
1Tractate Avoth 5:19. A different explanation of this Mishnah is presented in KST 63.
2The notion that we do not deserve to serve G-d is a spiritual obstacle for anyone who lives with awareness of G-d's greatness and man's comparative insignificance. The only way this notion can be overcome is by realizing that even the most awesome spiritual beings are insignificant before G-d, as is the awesomeness of the cosmos. Nevertheless, beyond all human comprehension and above all human rationale, the Infinite G-d chose the infinitesimal mortal man on this speck of dust Planet Earth to serve Him and perfect His creation. Experiencing this awareness is indeed simultaneously the epitome of humility and paradoxically the peak of pride, and is the point at which the human "I," ani, dissolves into the Divine "I," Ani (see KST 55).
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