Weekly Chasidic Story #1326 (5783-33) 17 Iyar 5783 (May 8, 2023)

"From Hebron to Meron"

At midnight, the two chief Rabbis of Hebron were walking together to Machpela Cave . As soon as they reached where Shimon and Shmuel were standing, Shimon disappeared, leaving Shmuel by himself.

Connection: Lag b'Omer in Meron

Story in PDF format for more convenient printing

From Hebron To Meron

One autumn day Rabbi Yedidya Horodner walked into the "Tiferet Yisrael" synagogue in the Old City of Jerusalem with a big smile on his face. With a grand flourish he placed a bottle of whiskey and some cake on the table, and invited everyone to make a "l'chayim."

The congregants wondered what the cause for celebration might be. A rumor had been circulating that the day before, Rabbi Horodner had gone to all the local yeshivas and distributed candy to the children. Something good had obviously occurred, and they waited expectantly to hear what it was.

Indeed, after everyone had made a blessing on the cake and lifted a few glasses, the Rabbi filled them in:

The whole story revolved around the Rabbi's nephew, a 15-year-old boy named Shmuel Rosen who was originally from Riga. His father, Rabbi Ozer Rosen, had sent the lad to his uncle when he was only eight years old, in the belief that there was no better place in the world to develop the boy's intellectual talents than the holy city.

Rabbi Horodner raised little Shmuel as if he was his own son, and the boy flourished. He was a delightful child, and exceptionally devoted to his studies.

A few weeks ago, however, disaster had struck. After experiencing deteriorating vision for several months, Shmuel was now completely blind. The total darkness had set in as he was sitting and poring over a volume of the Talmud.

The boy's spirit was completely broken. For days and nights he wept over his fate, most bitterly over his inability to study Torah by himself. Suffering from a profound sadness, he withdrew and rarely ventured from his room.

His uncle felt helpless, until it occurred to him that a change of place might do the boy good. He contacted his friend, Reb Shimon Hoizman of Hebron, who agreed to let the boy stay in his house. Shmuel felt a little better in Hebron, but remained very depressed.

At that time the Jewish community of Hebron was headed by two Torah giants: the Sefardic Rabbi Chizkiyahu Medini (author of Sdei Chemed), and the Chasidic Rabbi Shimon-Menashe Chaikin, the chief Ashkenazic authority in the city. Every evening at midnight, the two Rabbis would go to the Cave of Machpeila, the resting place of the Jewish Patriarchs and Matriarchs [1], to recite Tikun Chatzot (a special prayer lamenting the destruction of the Holy Temple).

R. Shimon Hoizman was very affected by the boy's suffering. But what could he do to help? Then one evening, he came up with a plan....

About a half hour before midnight R. Shimon went into Shmuel's room. "Wake up, son," he whispered to him softly. "Get dressed and follow me." The two went off into the night, in the direction of Rabbi Chaikin's courtyard.

A few minutes later the two chief Rabbis could be seen approaching, on their way to the Cave of Machpeila. As soon as they reached the spot where R. Shimon and Shmuel were standing, R. Shimon disappeared, leaving Shmuel by himself. The two Rabbis quickly realized that Shmuel was blind. They gently asked him how he had become sightless.

When the young man got up to the part about how he had become totally blind while studying, Rabbi Medini asked if he remembered the last words he had been able to see. "Of course I remember!" Shmuel responded. "They were in Tractate Chulin, page 36A: 'On whom can we depend? Come, let us rely on the words of Rabbi Shimon [Bar Yochai]'"

The two Rabbis became very excited. "If that is the case," they said almost simultaneously, "then you can certainly rely on the holy Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai to help you. Go to his grave in Meron, ask for his blessing, and G-d will surely heal you."

The next morning Shmuel returned to Jerusalem, and the very same day he and his uncle set off for Meron. It was a difficult journey, but after several days they arrived safely. Even before they approached the holy gravesite they were filled with a feeling of confidence. For days they remained at the grave of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, praying steadily to G-d for a miraculous recovery.

The miracle occurred exactly one week later. Rabbi Horodner was reading aloud from the Gemara when all of sudden Shmuel let out a yelp. "Uncle! I can see your shadow!"

Over the course of the next few days Shmuel's vision improved steadily, until 13 days later it was restored completely. Still camped out at the holy gravesite, uncle and nephew broke out into a spontaneous dance, as they sang the verses that are traditionally sung on Lag b'Omer, the anniversary of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai's passing:

"His teachings are our protection;
they are the light of our eyes.
He is our advocate for good,
Rabban Shimon Bar Yochai..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Excerpted and supplemented by Yerachmiel Tilles from lchaimweekly .org #645 (5761/2001)

Connection: Lag b'Omer in Meron

Biographical notes:
Rabbi Chizkiyahu Medini [1832 - 24 Kislev 1904] was born and raised in Jerusalem. After many years in Turkey, Buchara and the Crimea, he returned to the Holy Land in 1878 and became the head of the rabbinical court and main yeshiva in Hebron in 1880, where he successfully revitalized the Jewish educational and social institutions. He is best known for his monumental, universally-acclaimed 18-volume Talmudic and halachic encyclopedia, Sedei Chemed (the only non-Chabad book ever published by the official Chabad publishing company). A beloved leader everywhere he served, he dedicated his life to the dissemination of Torah study and deeds of kindness. As a result of his influence, many attacks on Hebron's Jews were averted, and a number of heavy fines and taxes were revoked. Even the Arab inhabitants of Hebron accepted him as a holy man. After his burial they tried to steal his body and bury him in a mosque, but were unsuccessful.

Rabbi Shimon-Menashe Chaikin (1777-1893), was among the most prominent disciples of the Mitteler Rebbe and the Tzemach Tzedek [the 2nd & 3rd Lubavitcher Rebbes]. He immigrated from Slutsk to Eretz Israel in 1819, and there served as the rabbi and leader of the Chabad congregation of Hebron for over seventy years. Blessed with longevity, he lived until the age of 116 years.

Footnotes: [1]Abraham & Sarah, Isaac & Rebecca, Jacob & Leah; and according to tradition, Adam & Eve.

Yerachmiel Tilles is co-founder and associate director of Ascent-of-Safed, and chief editor of this website (and of KabbalaOnline.org). He has hundreds of published stories to his credit, and many have been translated into other languages. He tells them live at Ascent nearly every Saturday night.

To receive the Story by e-mail every Wednesday--sign up here!

"Festivals of the Full Moon"
("Under the Full Moon" vol 2 - holiday stories)
is now available for purchase from ASCENT
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

Book 1 of Yerachmiel Tilles's 3-volume set, "Saturday Night, Full Moon",
is also available for purchase on our KabbalaOnline-shop site.