#510 (s5767-49 / 15 Elul 5767)
A Prosperous Visitor "I wished to see
the holy Baal Shem Tov and receive his blessing, though I am not in need
of anything, thank G-d," said the visitor.
A Prosperous Visitor The
holy Baal Shem Tov was sitting in his room, when a light knock on the door
interrupted his thoughts. His attendant announced a visitor.
The visitor
was a prosperous looking middle-aged Jewish man. "I have heard of the fame
of the saintly Rabbi. I wished to see the Rabbi's holy face and receive his blessing,
though I am not in need of anything, thank G-d," said the visitor. The
Besht studied the man's face. Then he said, "It is written, 'G-d directs
the steps of man.' This means that no Jew goes anywhere without being directed
by Divine Providence. Though you may not know it, you have not come here of your
own free will." The gentleman looked puzzled, but waited for the Baal
Shem Tov to continue. To his great surprise the Besht began to tell a story: "Once,
there lived two boys who were best of friends. They went to yeshiva together
from the time they were small children. The years flew by, and soon the boys were
married businessmen. Each one went to live in a different town. "At
first, both did very well and became quite wealthy. Later, however, one of them
had one bad business deal after another, until he lost his entire fortune. "The
poor man remembered his more fortunate friend and decided to seek his help. Arriving
at his friend's house he was warmly welcomed. They chatted, remembering old times.
Eventually the host asked his visitor the reason for the surprise visit. The visitor
poured out his heart, saying that he came to seek help. "The host told
him that he had nothing to worry about. He called his bookkeeper and ordered him
to draw up a balance of his affairs. To the amazement of the clerk and the visitor,
he ordered half of his fortune transferred to his impoverished friend. 'My friend,'
he said, 'we always shared everything we had. I am now going to share everything
I have with you again!' "The poor man returned home rich again. He
set up his business and shortly doubled his fortune. But what happened to his
friend? His fortune took a turn for the worse. Soon, he was very poor. "It
was now his turn to seek the aid of his friend, whom he had helped in his hour
of need. He made his way to his friend's house. He was made to wait quite a while,
and finally, out came the servant with word that his master did not remember the
name of the visitor, and in any case was too busy to see anyone. "The
poor man could hardly believe his ears. 'Confidentially,' the servant added, 'ever
since my master regained his riches, he has become a hard man with no sympathy
for anyone!' "There was nothing for the poor man to do but return home.
He could not get over the humiliation and disappointment he had suffered and he
soon died. "On the very same day, the rich man in the other town had
an accident and died too. The two souls ascended to heaven and appeared for judgment.
The soul of the poor man who had treated his friend so generously was told of
his great reward and the Gates of Paradise were thrown open for him. But the other
soul was condemned to suffer atonement, until the soul became pure and clean again. "The
first soul said sadly, 'How can I enjoy the happiness of Paradise knowing that
my friend is not with me, and is being punished on my account?' The soul was given
permission to pronounce judgment in this case. Without hesitation, the soul said
that both of them should again be sent into bodies, to live their lives anew,
so that the other soul could make amends where it had failed. Selflessly, this
soul accepted a life of poverty again, in order to help the other soul. "Some
time afterwards," continued the Baal Shem Tov, "two baby boys were born
in two different towns, one rich and one poor. When the poor boy grew up, he went
from door to door begging alms. One day he arrived in the town where the rich
man lived, and knocked at his door. The rich man opened the door, and upon seeing
a beggar, exclaimed, 'You are a stranger in this town if you do not know that
I do not give alms to any beggar, not even local ones!' "The beggar
had not eaten for three days. He collapsed and died. "Now what do you
think of this rich man?" the saintly Baal Shem Tov concluded, his keen eyes
piercing through the visitor. The Baal Shem Tov's visitor grew pale and frightened.
His eyes filled with tears, but he could not utter a word, for he remembered the
beggar who had knocked at his door a few days before he made his way to the Baal
Shem Tov. The pale and haggard face of the dead beggar which had made no impression
on him then, now began to torment him, and he wept bitterly.
"Is
there any hope for me? Is there anything I can do to save my soul?" the visitor
pleaded. The Baal Shem Tov replied, "Yes, there is something you can
do. You must try to find the survivors of the poor man and ask their forgiveness.
You must provide them with all their needs for the rest of their lives and distribute
the rest of your fortune to the poor and needy. Then, pray to G-d with all your
heart, for He is near to all who call unto Him in truth." ~~~~~~~~~
[Adapted
by Yrachmiel Tilles from the rendition on www.lchaimweekly.org (#726),
with permission.] 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
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