QUALITY
OF LIFE
Once a chasid from a neighboring town came
to his Rebbe, Rabbi Zvi Hersh of Riminov, and begged him to
somehow intercede so that his father-in-law would die. "What!"
exclaimed R. Hersh, "What are you talking about."
"Well, my father-in-law is very old, already more than 100 years
old," explained the chasid, "And he has to be watched over
all the time. He can't really do much for himself, and he is miserable
most of the time. He doesn't learn and doesn't pray any more. He has
had enough of life already, but he just keeps hanging on day after
day, week after week, year after year."
The Riminover didn't really know what to say, but he reasoned that
a Jew who lived to such an age must have some kind of merit. He commanded
the chasid to bring in the old man to speak with him. The chasid protested
saying that his father-in-law was too old and too feeble, but the
rebbe wouldn't relent. "Bring him in anyway as I have requested,"
he ordered.
So they picked up the old man, put him in a wagon and brought him
to Riminov. They carried him in on a bed and placed him in front of
the Rebbe. R. Hersh began to ask him questions. He soon found out
that the old man was a simple but boorish Jew. He had been a wagon
driver all of his life. He recited the prayers in the morning, but
his real interest was to get to breakfast. He went to shul
on Shabbos, but the cholent (Sabbath stew) served at
the end was his main reason.
The Riminover peppered him with more questions to find out of the
old Jew could remember any reason that might account for his many
years. Maybe there was some special mitzvah that he did once
or some experience, maybe he met a tzadik, a special holy Jew,
on some noteworthy occasion that could have helped him to merit a
long life.
The old Jew recalled that once some young Torah scholars had asked
him to take them for Shabbos to a town about a half a day's
journey away called Lujzinsk. "They pleaded with me, he reminisced,
"but I didn't want to go. I told them that I like Shabbos
at home with my bed and my cholent. But they promised
me a good wage and the same food that I would eat at home and then
some. So I finally agreed and we set off. We got there not long before
Shabbos and they set me up in a nice hotel."
"Sure enough, right after the Shabbos Night prayers, they
showed up with a great meal; everything just the way I like it. They
came back a while later and asked me if I wanted to go with them to
some kind of gathering, but I told them that I didn't come for that
kind of thing, and they should let me sleep. So, being decent guys,
they did."
"In the morning after the Morning prayers, they again brought
me a good meal with a cholent even better than what I would
have gotten at home. So I ate my fill and went down for a Shabbos
nap. When I got woke up, it was already close to dark and nobody was
around. I waited awhile, but none of my passengers showed their faces.
So I went to look for them. I came to the shul and I heard
the loudest singing and saw wildest dancing you can imagine. I was
sure that they were all shikker (plastered). I peeked inside
and saw empty bottles everywhere, and these guys were singing and
dancing like anything. When I went in I saw that they were in a circle
and they were all dancing around in a circle and one of them there
in the middle. He must have been the chief drunk or something because
he was tall and his face was red like fire and he was dancing with
his eyes closed and they were all singing and dancing around him."
At this point the Riminover stopped the old man, exclaiming that
now he understood everything. The tall one in the middle with a face
red like fire was none other the Rebbe R' Elimelech of Lujzinsk.
He explained that it is well known that whoever even just caught a
glimpse of R' Elimelech's face would not be able to leave the world
until he had done teshuva. **
So the rebbe turned towards the old man and started to explain to
him in a gentle fatherly way how G-d created the world, and how everything
in it was put there for our benefit. He described the beauty of the
creation, how every aspect of it is perfect, existing together in
total harmony.
Then he began to explain the nature of the Jewish soul. He described
how every Jew is like one soul, we are only separated by the physical
bodies that we bear. Later, G-d gave us the Torah and its mitzvot,
specific instruction for serving Him and understanding His will. The
old Jew sat and listened but didn't utter a sound.
So the rebbe continued. He began to describe how we were given the
Shabbos to further bring ourselves closer to Him. We welcome
the Shabbos, and the Divine Presence comes to us, and so to
speak, sits at our table together with us, sharing our food and our
company.
At this point the old Jew turned his head and stared dreamily out
the window. A moment passed and he let out a deep sigh. The Riminover
(who was a Cohen) quickly left the room (Cohanim even
today are forbidden contact with the dead). The old Jew heaved one
more sigh of remorseful repentance and left this world - for the world
to come.
Adapted by Yrachmiel Tilles from www.nishmas.org, the website
of Nishmas Chayim Yeshiva in Jerusalem, headed by Rabbi Benyamin
Adilman. He is also the author of a very interesting, but sporadically
published, weekly parsha sheet, B'ohelei Tzadikim.
** The same is said about whoever immerses in the underground Ari
Mikveh in Safed. - ed.
Biographical notes:
Rebbe Zvi Hirsh of Riminov [1778-29 Cheshvan 1847] was the
attendant of the well-known Rebbe, R. Menachem Mendel of Riminov,
and subsequently his successor. He had a reputation as a miracle worker.
Some of his teachings are collected in Mevasser Tov and in
Be'erot HaMayim.
Rabbi Elimelech of Lujzinsk (1717 - 21 Adar 1787), was a major
disciple of the Maggid of Mezritch, successor to the Baal
Shem Tov, and the leading Rebbe of the subsequent generation
in Poland-Galitzia. Most of the great Chassidic dynasties stem from
his disciples. His book, Noam Elimelech, is one of the most
popular of all Chassidic works.