Once, a prominent doctor became interested in becoming more religious, and hearing about the Baal Shem Tov, visited him in Medzibuz. The doctor watched the Besht as he prayed and carefully listened to the Besht's teaching. He was fascinated to see that sometimes the Besht's face flushed to a bright red and then turned to a deathly white, and he asked to take the Besht's pulse. When the Besht agreed, the doctor took his pulse and afterward said that the Besht's constitution was made up of two strange contrary powers. If just one of them was present, said the doctor, the Besht would not be able to live, since each was so powerful; but because both of them were present, they balanced each other and the Besht was able to remain alive.

After the doctor had left, the Besht explained to his disciples, "It's true; he's an expert doctor and very astute. But he doesn't really understand what these 'two powers' are. There are two ways in divine service. On the one side, is the attribute of love and yearning; on the other side, there’s the attribute of fear and awe. My love of God is so strong that my yearning for Him could actually cause me to expire. With that attribute alone, my soul couldn't remain in my body and I wouldn't be able to stay alive for even one minute. And my fear and awe before God's greatness is so powerful that I couldn't survive because of the tremendous dread I feel. It’s only because both of these powers balance and neutralize each other, that I can remain alive."