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BAAL SHEM TOV STORY
Following the Weekly Torah Reading
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THE CANOPY OF
FIRE
The Torah portion reads, "A fire came forth from
before G·d and consumed what was on the
altar: the burnt offering and the fats. All the people
saw and they raised their voices in praise. . . ."
Shemini 9:24
It was Simchat Torah at the synagogue of the Baal
Shem Tov. After the evening, Yom Tov (holyday)
prayers, the Chassidim left the synagogue to eat the
special Yom Tov dinner and then returned to join their
Rebbe, the Baal Shem Tov, in the festivities. They
gathered in the study hall of the synagogue and
danced and whirled and twirled around in a circle for
many hours while they passed the Sefer Torahs from
one to another, sang the traditional Simchat Torah
songs, and drank lots of wine. By early morning, the
faithful were feeling very b'simchah (joyful) and some
even a little shicher (drunk). They begged the
shammos (synagogue caretaker) to bring up more
wine from the Baal Shem Tov's wine cellar.
When Chana, the Baal Shem Tov's wife,
heard the commotion from the study hall and the
Chassidim pleading with the Shammos caretaker to
bring up more wine from the wine cellar, she became
worried that there wouldn't be enough wine left for
making the blessing over Kiddush and Havdalah
(brief ceremony to separate the weekdays from the
Sabbath or Holy days).
So, she quickly went into the private study of her
husband, the Baal Shem Tov, and requested of
him, "Yisrael, go into the study hall and tell your
Chassidim to stop drinking and dancing because you
won't have enough wine for making Kiddush and
Havdalah.
The Baal Shem Tov chuckled and said, "Chana, I
agree. Would you please tell them to stop and go
home?"
She immediately went into the study hall to give the
Chassidim the message from the Rebbe, the Baal
Shem Tov. But when she entered the hall, she saw
them still dancing in a circle with flames of fire burning
above their heads in the shape of a circular canopy.
She immediately collected the empty wine containers
scattered around the hall, went down to the wine cellar
to refill them, and brought them back to the dancing
Chassidim.
A while later, when saw her husband, the
Baal Shem Tov inquired, "So Chana, did you tell them
to go home?"
Chana answered, "Next time, Yisrael, it might
be better if you tell them yourself."
And so it was.
Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaKohane (Howard M.
Cohn, Patent Attorney) from a story entitled The Dance
of the Chassidim from a translation in Shevchei
HaBesht .
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Sefer Baal Shem Tov
The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on the Torah
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And Moses said: This is the thing which the
L·rd
commanded that you should do, so that the glory of
the L·rd may appear to you. (Leviticus 9:6)
Moses said to Israel, "Remove that evil inclination
from your hearts, so that you should all have one
[feeling of] awe, and be of one mind in serving
G·d.
Just as He is singular in the world, so you should be
singular worship of Him."
Midrash Sifra, on this verse
The fundamental principle is that a person should
always have only one thought in mind when it comes
to serving G·d, as it is written: "G·d
has made it so that
men should fear before Him" (Ecclesiastes 3:14),
yet "they sought out many
complications."1For too many thoughts
will make one confused. [Rather], one should
constantly imagine that everything in the world is filled
with the Creator, as it is said: "Do I not fill heaven and
earth? says the L·rd" (Jeremiah 23:24). Even
the
outcome of our own plans and intentions are from
G·d. The most insignificant acts are under His
direction.
You should think that everything, whether
is it the World of the Firmaments, the World of Angels,
or of the Throne2is as nothing compared
to Him, for all of them exist within the space emptied
of His light, from where He removed
Himself,3 and where He created
everything with a single word. Why should you desire
anything that is in those worlds? It is no more than
one of His words! Better to cleave to the Creator, who
is beyond the worlds, for He is the main thing, rather
than to attach yourself to something [worldly, which is]
secondary. This is what the Zohar means, when it
says: "Fortunate are those righteous ones, who know
how to direct their wishes to the Holy, Supernal King,
and not to worldly things and transient
desires."4For in the end, the worlds will
ultimately be destroyed.5 Rather, you
should constantly think about G·d, and attach
yourself
to Him with absolute love, far beyond [the love of]
things of this world, for everything good in the world is
rooted in Him.
You should think, "I want to always give joy
to Him, and serve Him constantly." Your thoughts
should always be attached to the supernal worlds, in
Him, may He be blessed. This is alluded to in the
verse: "And from the door of the Sanctuary, he should
not go out" (Leviticus 8:33). And when you must speak
about mundane things, imagine that you are going
down from the supernal world, like a person who
leaves his house with the intention to return. Even as
he leaves, he is thinking "When will I return?"
Likewise, your thoughts should always be in the
Supernal world, for that is G·d's main house.
Even
when you discuss matters of this world, you should
immediately reattach your thoughts to their original
place. This is what David [meant, when he] said to his
son Solomon: "I am going the way of all the earth" (I
Kings 2:2) - he was like a person going on a trip,
whose thoughts and desires urge him to return to his
home as soon as he can.
Tzivos
HaRivash p. 9b
1From Ecclesiastes 7:29: "G·d
made
man straight, but they sought out many
complications." The implication is that one does not
require complexity in the service of G·d, but
rather
direct, pure-hearted intention.
2Various supernal worlds, according to
Kabbalah.
3This refers to the teaching of the Arizal,
that at the beginning of creation,
G·d "withdrew"
Himself, and left an empty space in the middle of His
Infinite Being into which to emanate a creation.
Whether the "empty space" is to be taken literally or
not has been a subject of debate among Kabbalists
for centuries. Chasidus teaches that the "empty
space," is only a concealment of G·d's ever-
Presence.
Thus, the Baal Shem Tov stresses that G·d
can be
found everywhere, even in the most mundane
activities.
4Zohar 2:134b.
5This is based upon an opinion in the
Talmud (Sanhedrin 97a) that the world will only exist
for six millennia and revert to nothingness in the
seventh.
Translation
and Commentary by Rabbi Dr.
Eliezer Shore
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THE PILLAR OF PRAYER
The Baal Shem Tov's Teachings on Prayer
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Section 112.
How does one dance before the bride? Beis
Shammai said: "The bride, as she is. " Beis Hillel
said, "A pleasant and gracious bride!"
In the future, the Shechinah will be called "bride," as
opposed to now, when she is called "Zos"
("this").1 How do we dance before the
Shechinah now, when she is in exile, before she is
called "bride"? For dancing serves to raise up the
sparks and the lowest level to a high level, such as in
holy dance.2 However, in the period of
the exile it does not ascend well, for who can do this
perfectly, as is explained3 in the mystery
of nefilas apayim,4 which uplifts the
sparks from the world of Asiyah to the highest level.
As Rabbi Chaim Vital said about this, that none of us
know how.
Therefore, Beis Shammai said "The bride,
as she is," as the Zohar says: "Her husband is known
in the gates (she'arim)." That is, "according to what
each person approximates (mesha'er) in his mind
and ability." Meaning, in a general way. For if he is
unable to unite and adorn the Shechinah in a specific
way,5 he should still appraise the Bride
as she is. But Beis Hillel says "A pleasant and
gracious bride!" That is, one must know how to
remove the dirty garments from the spark in a specific
way and to adorn it, so that the Shechinah should be
pleasant and gracious.
Tzafnah Paneach, p. 46a
1Zos is a feminine pronoun
and refers to the Divine Presence in Kabbalistic texts.
2When a person dances within a
holy context, such as at a Jewish wedding or on the
festivals, his uplifted feet parallel the redemption of
the lowest level of creation (Malchus, Asiyah) from its
attachment to the impure shells.
3In the writings of the Arizal.
4The prayer immediately following
the Amidah, recited in the morning and afternoon
weekday service, in which the worshipper falls on his
face (i.e. places his face on his forearm), in an act of
repentance. This represents the "falling" to the lowest
level; for once the worshipper has ascended to the
highest world of Atzilus during the Amidah, he can
now descend to collect the fallen sparks that are in the
netherworlds.
5I.e. to know exactly which sparks
of the Shechinah are in exile and the precise
Unifications required to free her.
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi Dr.
Eliezer Shore
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THE LIGHT OF THE EYES
On the Greatness of the Baal Shem Tov
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Section 49.
There is a segulah from the
Ramban to say the Psalm "May the graciousness of
the L·rd our G·d be upon us. . . " (Psalms 90:17) -
repeating each word seven times - after lighting the
Chanukah lights. This is very good to do. My Master,
the Baal Shem Tov told us to say both this Psalm and
Psalm 91: "He who dwells in the covert of the Most
High," seven times straight. He would also do so on
the High Holy Days, and in all times of trouble. One
should meditate on two letter nuns.
The Siddur of R. Shabsai
Translation and Commentary by
Rabbi
Dr. Eliezer Shore
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KESER SHEM TOV
Anthology of the Teachings of the Baal Shem Tov
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Section 145
The Baal Shem Tov taught1:
Sometimes excessive humility can cause a person to
fall away from serving G·d. One perceives
oneself as so lowly, that one cannot believe that a
human being can elicit an abundance of blessing to
all worlds by virtue of one's prayer and Torah study, for
indeed, even the angels are sustained by human
prayers and Torah study. If one would believe this, one
would serve G·d fervently with joy and awe,
and out of a sense of abundance. One would make
sure that every word one utters and every movement
one makes is done properly. One would also take to
heart the words of King (Solomon) [David], who
said, "If you lie down between the lips, 2"
an allusion that G·d lies in wait by man's lips
to kiss them when man utters words of Torah or
prayer with awe and love. If one would only take this to
heart, one would be seized with trembling and awe
that the great and awesome King is standing in wait
by the lips of mortal man.
This teaching is implied in the sages' saying that
Rabbi Zechariah's humility caused the destruction of
the Temple.3
Thus, a person should keep in mind and say to
himself that he is a ladder whose legs are on the
ground but whose head reaches the heavens, and all
one's movements, dealings and speech have an
impact Above. Then, one would be careful that all
one's ways and dealings are done with the proper
intentions. However, when one thinks, "What value do
I have in the inner worlds? How can I rectify anything
Above or below, that my dealings should have any
effect Above," one then follows one's heart's desires,
telling oneself that one can thus do as one pleases.
But this is not so, for every person comes close to
G·d literally by proper behavior, as the verse
says, "Walk in His ways."4Thus, by one's
acting compassionately in this world, one arouses the
Divine measure of compassion Above, throughout all
worlds.
This is alluded to in, "Know what is Above
you."5Know what is Above - you. That is,
by being aware of whatever emotion is arising within
oneself, one can know what Divine measure is being
aroused at that moment.6This is also
alluded to in the verse, "He will grant you compassion
and have compassion on you."7
1Toldoth Yaakov Yoseph, Ekev #4
2Psalms 68:14.
3Tractate Gittin 56a.
4Deuteronomy 28:9. This verse is in the
context of blessings to the Jewish people, and of the
gentile nations acknowledging the G·d of
Israel.
5Tractate Avoth 2:1.
6See #43.
7Deuteronomy 13:18. Rebbe Nachman
(Likutey Moharan I 119), explains this verse to mean
that when a person needs G·d's compassion,
G·d sends him a situation in which to show
compassion for someone else, in order to thus
arouse G·d's compassion for him.
Translation and Commentary by Rabbi
Yehoshua
Starrett
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