A MISSED OPPORTUNITY

The Torah portion reads, G-d spoke to Moses, saying, "Send out men for yourself to explore the Canaanite territory that I am about to give to the Israelites." Shlach 13:1

Moses sent important people of high standing as spies and charged them with a mission of finding out the best and easiest way to conquer the land of Israel. But they misled the Israelites and said that the land was impossible to conquer because they used their intellect to arrive at this conclusion instead of relying on Moses, the leader of the generation, who knew the land was conquerable. Based on a teaching of the Lubavitcher Rebbe

Reb Zev Kitzes came to his Rebbe, the Baal Shem Tov, to ask for a brocha (blessing) before setting out for a trip to Eretz Israel (Land of Israel).

After giving him a brocha for a successful trip, the Baal Shem Tov cautioned, "Reb Zev, just a word of advice, carefully consider how you answer a question posed to you."

Reb Zev put the words of advice from his Rebbe in his mind and started off on the arduous journey to Eretz Israel. After weeks of travel by carriage, he boarded a sail boat and continued the journey. Several weeks at sea passed and the boat stopped for a short time at an island. Reb Zev, along with the other passengers, disembarked to purchase supplies for the remainder of the trip. He lost track of time and when he returned to where the boat had docked, it had already sailed away.

Reb Zev was very worried that he'd never be able to return to his home and family. He started to wander around the island looking for some signs of civilization. Finally he found a path that led to a small house. " Boruch Hashem (Thank G-d)," he told himself.

He knocked at the front door and it was opened by an old man with white hair and a long white beard. "Shalom Aleichem (peace be to you), Aleichem Shalom," they greeted each other. Reb Zev told the old man his tale of woe about how he had been left by the boat and his fate of being stuck for the rest of his life on this island.

"Don't worry Reb Zev," said the old man in a comforting voice. "Be my guest for Shabbos and next week there will be other boats that will stop and take you to your destination."

Reb Zev felt relieved and had a very uplifting Shabbos with his host.

Sure enough, the next week a boat docked at the island.

While the host walked with Reb Zev to the boat, he asked, "How are the Jews in your land doing? What's going on with them?"

Reb Zev was rushing to board the boat and didn't pay any attention to how he answered the question. He automatically replied, "Boruch Hashem, G-d does not forsake His children." Then he boarded the boat and it sailed away.

Several days later, Reb Zev suddenly thought that maybe the question of the old man was the very one that the Baal Shem Tov had warned him to consider carefully before answering. "Why didn't I remember the Rebbe's warning?" he thought. "Why didn't I tell him about the suffering and hardships that the Jews were experiencing in Poland and Russia?" These thoughts bothered him so much that he finally decided to return and tell the Baal Shem Tov what happened without completing his trip to Eretz Israel.

Just as Reb Zev was entering his Rebbe's study, the Baal Shem Tov sadly greeted him with, "Every day Avraham Aveinu (our father Abraham) stands before G-d and asks about the welfare of his children. G-d always reassures him that he will not abandon them. Recently G-d said to Avraham, 'Reb Zev is traveling to Eretz Israel. Ask him about his fellow Jews. He'll tell you.'

"But you misled Avraham Aveinu," said the Baal Shem Tov sadly. "Had you described our suffering and hardship to him, you could have brought the Moshiach."

And so it was.

Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaCohane (Howard M. Cohn, Patent Attorney) from a story in Sipurei Tzadikim

 But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh lived from those men that went to spy out the land. (Numbers 14:38)

[A Tzaddik] should join his life-force to the life-force of the wicked. But if the wicked refuse to attach themselves to him, then their life-force remains with the Tzaddik.¹ This is what is written: "But Joshua . . . lived from those men that went to spy out the land."²
Ben Poras Yosef, Vayetze

¹The sefer Da'as Moshe (parashas Noach) explains this as follows: The Talmud states that G-d created a world of opposites, based upon the verse: "G-d made one thing against another" (Ecclesiastes 7:14). Every Tzaddik has a wicked person opposite him, and both have two portions - in heaven and in hell. If the Tzaddik is worthy, he will receive his own portion in the World to Come and the portion of his wicked protagonist. If he is undeserving it, he will receive his own portion in hell, and that of the wicked. According to the Baal Shem Tov, this principle applies to this world as well. The Magid of Mezritch explained that this occurs when the Tzaddik admonishes the wicked. The Tzaddik's words are the aspect of the Sefirah of Malchus, and the listener's ears correspond to the World of Hearing, Binah - which is higher than Malchus. When the listener does not heed the words of the Tzaddik, then the Tzaddik regains his own words, as well as the aspect of the listener.
² That is, his own life force was added to from those of the other spies.

38. There was a discussion among the Baal Shem Tov's closest students regarding two verses in Scripture. Of Noah it is written: "These are the chronicles of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, faultless in his generation; Noah walked with G-d."[1]  Of Abraham it is written: "G-d, before whom I walked."[2] It seems that Noah needed G-d's help and support, but Abraham strengthened himself and walked in his own righteousness.

One of the Baal Shem Tov's disciples asked, "Why is it that there are times when a person clings to G-d and knows in his soul that he is close to Him, But then suddenly loses his devekus and becomes distant from the Creator?"

The Baal Shem Tov answered with the following parable. When a father wants to teach his infant son to walk, what does he do? He stands his son between his outstretched arms so that the child walks between his father's arms and does not fall. When he comes close to his father, the father backs up slightly so that the child can approach him again. In this way, the child learns to walk. If the father didn't keep moving back, the child would only walk that short distance from where his father had first put him to where his father now stands. However, because the father moves back, the child walks further.

This is how G-d relates to His creatures. When a person is aflame with spiritual attachment, G-d must distance Himself, for if not, his devekus would be neither strong nor consistent. However, because G-d keeps moving away, the person must continually renew and strengthen his devekus. This is what King David alluded to when he said: "He will lead us eternally."[3] On this Rashi explains: "Like a man leads his small son slowly."[4]

For this reason, G-d is called "the hidden G-d." For even a Tzaddik never feels that he has reached perfection in serving G-d but always feels far from Him. This is designed so that he comes ever closer. It is the meaning of "He will lead us eternally." G-d is called "He" when He is hidden. This is in order that "He will lead us eternally (al'mus) - like a child (al'miah,)[5] so that we keep coming closer. Rav Yebi, Tehilim

11-2 By attaching yourself to the higher worlds during the Amidah you can cleave to the Supernal World even after prayer.

WHEN you attach yourself to the higher worlds during the Amidah, you can be raised even higher as our Rabbis have said, "When a person tries to purify himself, they help him."[1] Your thoughts will cling Above, and you will reach the level in which you cleave to the Supernal World even beyond the fixed times of prayer.

Tzava'as HaRivash 37