Weekly Chasidic Story #663 (s5770-48 / 30 Menachem-Av 5770)

Himalayan Rescue

On a daring rescue mission in the Himalayas, Dror-Moshe Shaul succeeded in utilizing skills he gained as an Israel Army paramedic.

Connection: ?

 

Himalayan Rescue

by Miriam Metzinger


Going to India is almost a rite of passage for many secular Israelis after completion of their mandatory army service. The Chabad emissaries in the Asian country are accustomed to rescuing young neshamot (souls) from cults and Eastern religions which often attract young Israelis with promises of "enlightenment." Rabbi Dror- Moshe Shaul [a former Jewish-meditation instructor at Ascent, in Tsfat -ed.], director of Chabad house in Dharamsala India, had the privilege recently of also saving a Jewish body. On a daring rescue mission in the Himalayas in the dead of night, he succeeded in utilizing skills he gained as an Israel Army paramedic.

Rabbi Shaul's Chabad house is located at the foothills of the breathtaking Himalayan Mountains, which attract many Israeli hikers. Even veteran hikers do not approach these peaks with absolute confidence and warn novice hikers to proceed with caution.

Recently, an Israeli climber fell into a ditch at a high altitude, and his condition was potentially fatal. A fellow hiker ran to the Chabad house to alert Rabbi Shaul. As the young man was fighting for his life in the cold and the darkness, the young rabbi and his assistants prepared bandages and IV infusions, and phoned the Indian army and police to request an emergency helicopter. The family in Israel and the Israeli ambassador in Delhi were also informed.

Ten strong men braved their way up the mountain. While a jeep would have been the fastest mode of transport, all the Indian drivers were drunk. The path was dark and treacherous, but a trip that would usually take 4 to 6 hours was completed in only two hours. Three of the men couldn't reach the destination, and had to be left behind. The remaining seven and Rabbi Shaul, finally found Ronny, who had fallen 35 meters and had lost a dangerous amount of blood. Rabbi Shaul gave Ronny an IV infusion and bandages and warned the Indian army that a helicopter was the only way Ronny could be saved. They promised to provide one at dawn.

The men spent the cold night in the mountains with no blankets or sleeping bags, and gave their only blanket to Ronny, who was thankful to have been rescued. The helicopter arrived at 7 am, but searched for an hour before it was able to spot Ronny. He spent another two hours on the helicopter before landing at the hospital and surviving a life-saving operation.

"Indeed, the Dharamsala Chabad house is the address for saving not only spiritual lives but physical lives too!" said Rabbi Shaul.

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[Adapted by Yerachmiel Tilles with permission from an article by the author in "Living Jewish."]

Connection: Weekly Torah - preventing 21:1 ! (Toda to D. Kahn of England)

 



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.

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