# 381 (s5765-24/ 14 Adar 5765)

The Borrowed Pipe

The disciples of the Baal Shem Tov repeatedly requested that he show them the Prophet Eliyahu.


The Borrowed Pipe

The disciples of the Baal Shem Tov repeatedly requested that he show them the Prophet Eliyahu, until he finally agreed.

Once they all went out to the fields together, according to their custom every Friday mid afternoon, in order to hear words of Torah from the mouth of their rebbe and to greet the incoming Shabbat.

Suddenly he said: "I would like to smoke a pipe."

His disciples spread out in all directions in the hope of finding someone willing to lend his pipe, but saw no one and returned empty handed.

The tzaddik stood up and said: "Here, I can see a Polish squire walking along. Perhaps you could go across and see if he has a pipe I could borrow?"

They went over to ask him, and not only did he agree to lend it, but followed them back to the rebbe so that he would give it to him personally.

He filled it with tobacco and lit it with a spark from two stones, and while the Baal Shem Tov smoked, he asked the stranger whether that year's harvest was coming up well all over the countryside, whether during threshing it yielded an ample measure of grain, and so on.

His disciples took no notice of the stranger, and spent the time repeating and memorizing the most recent teachings of their rebbe.

After the stranger had taken his leave, the Baal Shem Tov said: "Very well, I have kept my promise: I have shown you the Prophet Eliyahu."

His disciples were stupefied, and protested: "Rebbe, why did you not tell us that this man that we thought was a Polish squire was really Eliyahu, so that we could ask him to teach us?"

The Baal Shem Tov answered: "If you had understood yourselves and asked who this was, I would have revealed him to you, but if you did not understand, I was not permitted to do so.

I can however tell you what I said to him. When I asked him if the new crop was sprouting satisfactorily, my question meant: 'Has there been a widespread hitaruta diletata (inspiration from below)? Have our brethren taken the initiative in turning their souls toward their Father in heaven?'

And when I asked whether the harvest yielded ample grain, my question meant: 'Has this spontaneous awakening of our brethren resulted in a hitaruta dilayla, an arousal from above of divine grace, bringing all manner of blessings upon their heads?'

"And what he answered me, he answered me."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[Selected and adapted by Yrachmiel Tilles from the rendition in A Treasury of Chassidic Tales (Artscroll), as translated by our esteemed colleague Uri Kaploun from Sipurei Chasidim by Rabbi S. Y. Zevin.]

Biographical note:
Rabbi Yisrael, the Baal Shem Tov ["master of the good Name"], a unique and seminal figure in Jewish history, revealed the Chassidic movement and his own identity as an exceptionally holy person, on his 36th birthday, 18 Elul 1734. He passed away on the festival of Shavuot in 1760. He wrote no books, although many claim to contain his teachings. One available in English is the excellent annotated translation of Tzava'at Harivash, published by Kehos. An ongoing online translation of Sefer Baal Shem Tov can be found on www.baalshemtov.com


 

Yrachmiel Tilles is co-founder and associate director of Ascent-of-Safed, and editor of Ascent Quarterly and the AscentOfSafed.com and KabbalaOnline.org websites. He has hundreds of published stories to his credit.

back to Top   back to Index   Stories home page
Redesign and implementation - By WEB-ACTION