THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN REBBE AND CHASSID

When R’ Shaul would buy a lottery ticket, he would call over one of the bachurim and say: If this is a winning ticket, the money will go to the yeshiva and the yeshiva will repay me the two liras I paid for the ticket. Otherwise, I’ll lose the two liras. * Stories and sayings from R’ Chaim Shaul Brook a”h as recorded by his close talmid, R’ Chaim Ashkenazi a”h.

THE LITTLE DIFFERENCE

One of the Chassidim once said to the Rebbe Rashab, “What’s the difference between the Rebbe and me? Whatever I know, the Rebbe certainly knows, and what the Rebbe doesn’t know, I certainly don’t know. The difference between us is that there are things that the Rebbe knows which I don’t know. That’s not such a big difference.”

The Rebbe smiled.

REVIVING SOULS

One Rosh HaShana night, the Rebbe Rashab was sitting at the dining room table, lost in thought. He held a spoon and stirred the soup again and again. The attendant, who wasn’t particularly bright, told the Rebbe that the noodles were at the bottom, since he thought the Rebbe was looking for them.

The Rebbe said to him, “Ah, you revived me.”

A DIN TORAH WITH AN OX

A butcher went to a rav (I think it was R’ Isaac of Vitebsk) with a question about the kashrus of an ox he had slaughtered. The rav spent a long time looking into the matter until the butcher got tired of waiting and fell asleep. He woke up some time later and saw that the rav was still looking into the question.

He said to the rav: I feel bad about taking up the rav’s time.

The rav said: If you heard how the ox pleaded for me to declare him kosher, you wouldn’t say that.

Another story (which may have happened with the same rav): He had a halachic question about meat and he spent a long time looking into it. He said he wanted to declare it kosher because otherwise, the ox would call him to account in the Heavenly Court, and even though he knew he would be exonerated, it was a shame to take the time to go stand in judgment with an ox.

“AND THESE ARE THE NAMES”

In Lubavitch they did not look kindly on most authors, and they hoped the day would come when they would run out of titles and would stop writing s’farim. But when the Aruch HaShulchan was published, they sighed and said: Now, they will start naming all s’farim by reversing words. Just like instead of Shulchan Aruch we now have the Aruch HaShulchan, they will be able to continue producing many more s’farim.

VILNA SHAS WITH TWO FINGERS

In Igeres HaT’shuva, the Alter Rebbe writes that only someone who has the strength to fast and won’t be harmed thereby has permission to fast.

The Alter Rebbe was asked: How can a person know whether he has the strength to fast or not?

The Alter Rebbe said: Whoever can pick up the entire Vilna Shas with two fingers (the Shas was bound in wood at that time and the pages were thicker than they are today) has the strength to fast.

They asked: Can you do that?

The Alter Rebbe showed them he could lift it.

COUNTING COINS

The Rebbe (Rashab or Rayatz) gave R’ Shaul Brook some money to give to someone else. R’ Shaul did not dare to count it but immediately put it in his pocket.

The Rebbe said, “Money should be counted,” and he told R’ Shaul to take it out and count it.

THE ENTIRE 
COUNTRY KNOWS

Someone had a son-in-law who was a journalist and he said that he had much agmas nefesh (aggravation) from this son-in-law. They asked him why and he said, “Because he’s a fool. The foolishness is not so bad. It’s just that when he talks, the entire city knows about it, and when he writes, the entire country knows about it.”

WHY YESHIVOS CLOSE

R’ Chaim Shaul said that he once told the Ponovezher Rav that the situation in yeshiva was very difficult and he was afraid the yeshiva would close due to lack of funds. The Ponovezher Rav said: No yeshiva ever closed due to lack of money. It’s only when there are internal disputes that a yeshiva can close.

THE LOSS IS ALL MINE

When R’ Shaul would buy a lottery ticket, he would call over one of the bachurim and say: If this is a winning ticket, the money will go to the yeshiva and the yeshiva will repay me the two liras I paid for the ticket. Otherwise, I’ll lose the two liras.

IF THERE IS NO CHASSIDUS, THERE IS NO FOOD

Every day, R’ Shaul Brook went to yeshiva in the morning to teach Chassidus. Then he would eat breakfast in yeshiva. On Friday, when they did not learn Chassidus in the morning and he arrived later, he did not eat in yeshiva. He said he did this because it says in Kuntres Eitz HaChayim of the Rebbe Rashab that he who does not learn Chassidus is like stealing from the yeshiva when he eats in yeshiva.

STIPULATION FOR ATTENDING A SIMCHA

When they invited R’ Shaul to a simcha, he would say that if they would donate 25 liras to the yeshiva, he would attend.

THE BACHUR’S PUNISHMENT

R’ Shaul recounted how once, a bachur from the yeshiva in Tel Aviv did something wrong and the punishment was he would have to daven in a Siddur that was not Nusach Chabad and would have to say “Boruch Sh’Amar” before Hodu. The bachur cried and pleaded and said he was willing to accept any punishment, just not this.

TAKING MASHKE OUT OF THE WALL

R’ Chaim Shaul once asked a Lubavitcher in Tel Aviv for money for mashke. The Chassid said: What’s the big deal in bringing mashke with money? Let’s see whether you can take mashke out of the wall!

R’ Shaul said: Give me money for the yeshiva and I’ll show you how I take mashke from the wall. The Chassid gave him the amount of money he asked for the yeshiva and R’ Chaim Shaul said: Getting money out of you is harder than taking mashke out of the wall.

THE PLEASURE OF KINOS

R’ Shaul once overheard two bachurim talking at a farbrengen. One of them said to the other: Soon, a terrific speaker is going to speak and it’s worth listening to him. He’s a pleasure to listen to.

R’ Shaul said to them that this description reminded him of when he was in Russia and everyone had to hide from the authorities. He hid in the g’niza room of the shul. While he was there, he read through the discarded pages and s’farim that were there. Among the s’farim he saw a Kinos (mournful laments recited on Tisha B’Av) which said on it, “With clear, large letters so the reader will enjoy it.”

VICTORY AT ALL COSTS

When R’ Shaul would speak to us about the evils of machlokes, he would say that he remembered a dispute in Tel Aviv between two people over a few cents. They went to court over this. In order to win, one of them hired a top lawyer, so in the end they both had to pay 25 liras each. In those days, that was a lot of money.

REWARD FOR OBEYING THE REBBE

R’ Yaakov Yisroel of Cherkass (the son-in-law of the Mitteler Rebbe) was a maven when it came to money. He once told one of his Chassidim to bring a large sum of money. In order to obtain this sum, the Chassid would have to sell everything he owned. The Cherkasser warned him that if he didn’t bring him the money, he should not come and see him again.

This Chassid obeyed his Rebbe and sold everything he owned and brought the money to the Cherkasser. The Cherkasser put the money in a drawer and said nothing about the great sacrifice the Chassid had made in obeying him. He merely said, “You can go.” The Chassid was shocked. What would he do now? He was left penniless!

Within a short time, all the property he had sold burned down. Then the Cherkasser called for him and gave him all the money waiting for him in the drawer.

THE PUNISHMENT OF A BAAL MACHLOKES

For a while, there was a dispute between two brothers – R’ Yaakov Yisroel of Cherkass and a brother of his who served as an Admur of the Chernobyl dynasty. At this time, there lived a Jew in Berditchev by the name of Meir Margolis. This Meir was a distinguished man, and although in Berditchev they did not give the sixth aliya to someone who wore long pants (because this was considered modern), and he wore long pants, they gave him Shishi anyway.

Meir was once in Chernobyl for Yom Kippur and he saw a drunkard in shul walking from one person to the next, pulling on garments, etc. But when midnight came, this drunkard stood and davened Maariv in a most elevated way. R’ Meir inquired about this man and was told the following:

This drunkard was a Chassid of the Chernobyler. Due to a dispute with the Cherkasser, he made problems for a Chassid of the Cherkasser. The Chassid of the Cherkasser complained to his Rebbe, and each time his Rebbe calmed him down. However, the tzaros the man caused him became worse and worse.

One time, the Cherkasser went to Chernobyl. This Cherkasser Chassid went to his Rebbe and said that since he was there, perhaps he could take care of the Chassid who was bothering him. The Cherkasser told him to call for that man. When the man came into his room, he immediately began speaking against the Cherkasser. The Cherkasser said to him: Is that how you behave? First sit down and say L’chaim, and then we’ll hear what you have to say.

The Chernobyler Chassid agreed and the Cherkasser poured him a L’chaim. The man said a bracha and the Cherkasser said: You should drink and drink and drink.

From then on, the man became a drunkard, but he was actually a Chassid of a lofty level.

SILENT LISTENING

A Chassid once went to one of the Admurim of Chernobyl. There, the custom was that the Admur did not say Divrei Torah. When the Chassid returned, they asked him what he saw there. He said: I saw how the Admur was silent and everyone listened.