The House Filled With Light:
Rav Yissochor Dov of Belz zy”a was married for 12 years before his son, Rav Aharon zy”a, was born in the year 5640. When he was born, the entire house filled up with light, and his grandfather, Rav Yehoshua of Belz zy”a, declared, “He will be very great and no one will be able to comprehend his greatness.”
The Image of the Magid of Chernobyl:
Elder chasidim who saw him in his youth testified that he looked just like his ancestor, Rav Aharon of Chernobyl zy”a. His father also said the same thing. He once was speaking about the Magid of Chernobyl when his son walked into the room and he said, “This is the spitting image of Rav Aharon Charnobyler!”
He Saw his Grandfather’s Hands Burning:
His father related that when he was three-years-old, they were at the Pesach Seder of his grandfather, Rav Yehoshua of Belz zy”a, when the young Rav Aharon said to him, “Tatte, Zaidy’s hand is burning!” Rav Yehoshua asked Rav Yissochor Dov, “What did the boy say?” When he told him what Rav Aharon had said, Rav Yehoshua was amazed. He took the boy on his lap, placed his hand on his head, and blessed him.
He Saw Eliyahu Hanavi:
His uncle, Rav Yechiel of Krilovitz zt”l (son-in-law of Rav Yehoshua of Belz zy”a) related that he was present once at the Pesach Seder when, during the recitation of Shefoch Chamascha, the young Rav Aharon turned to his grandfather and said, “Zaidy, do you see that man!” His grandfather silenced him and said, “You don’t have to say everything that you see!”
Protection from Hashem:
When Rav Aharon was a child, his mother would make him chicken liver to eat for lunch every day in cheder. One day, he was on his way to cheder, with his lunch in his bag, when the Rebbitzen realized that there was a shailoh on the chicken. She ran to her husband to tell him to send a message to their son not to eat the liver, as even though the p’sak was that the chicken was kosher, it may not be “glatt”. Rav Yissochor Dov calmed her by saying that there was no need to send the message. When the child came home at the end of the day, his mother saw that the liver remained uneaten in his bag. When she asked him why he didn’t eat that day, he replied that he wasn’t hungry. Hashem was clearly protecting him even at a young age!
The Holiness of a Sefer Torah:
When he was a child, a fire broke out in the bais medrash of his grandfather, Rav Yehoshua of Belz. Everyone ran to try to save the Sifrei Torah, and there was a lot of confusion. With all this going on, everyone was surprised to see Rav Yehoshua coming out of the burning building while carrying his young grandson, Ahrele, in his hands. He told them, “I also saved a Sefer Torah from the fire!”
Shemiras Einayim:
Towards the end of his life, when he was living in Eretz Yisroel, he once looked out his window and happened to see the form of a woman outside. His face immediately turned white and he began to tremble. He said to himself, “That’s what happens when you look out the window!” He said this numerous times as his entire body shook. The shamash tried to comfort him by telling him that the woman he saw was the Rebbitzen. However, even after he ascertained that it definitely was her, he said one more time with emotion, “That’s what happens when you look out the window!”
His Father’s Blessing:
He once accompanied his father to the vacation town of Marienbad. His father, Rav Yissochor Dov, came home a few days before him, while he stayed for a while longer at his father’s request. When Rav Yissochor Dov arrived back in Belz, Rav Aharon’s son, R’ Moshele hy”d, came to greet him. Rav Yissochor Dov said to him, “Why didn’t you ask how your father is doing? Everyone says that your father is greater than your father’s father!”
Accepting the Leadership:
When he accepted the role of Rebbe, he said, “My father zt”l said that he had three reasons to accept to be a Rebbe. 1. When Rav Uri of Strelisk zy”a was nifter, his sons did not want to take over, and they died very young as a result. 2. Because he knew that this was the will of his father. 3. Because he knew that the Belzer chasidim would not go to any other Rebbe. “I also have these three reasons, as well as numerous other reasons to accept the position of leadership.”
Defending Every Jew:
The Skverer Rebbe zy”a said: “There are other tzadikim who defend Klal Yisroel, but the Belzer Rebbe does it better than all of them. The difference between him and them is that they say their defense out loud for specific Jews, but in their hearts, they know that they aren’t saying the truth. They are like a lawyer who knows that his client is guilty but still defends him as well as he can. The Belzer Rebbe, however, really feels that every Jew is good and innocent. He really believes that every Jew has good intentions and didn’t mean to do bad.”
Answering a Jew Like a Rambam:
He once told a Rov, “If you are learning a difficult Rambam, what do you do? You work hard to find an explanation. So too, if you know of a ‘difficult Jew’, you should work hard to find an explanation for his actions.”
Defending the Doctor:
Rav Aharon suffered from eye problems and even had eye surgery before the war. Because of this, he would be examined every week by an eye doctor who would test his eye pressure. After the examination, Rav Aharon would show his respect for the doctor by sitting him down by his table and conversing with him for a short time. He would then pay him for the visit. One winter, the doctor went on vacation in Switzerland for several weeks. When he got back, Rav Aharon asked how his vacation was, and the doctor, who was a simple Jew, told him that when he had been in the city of Basil, he had made sure to go to the “synagogue”. Before he left, he said that since Pesach was next week, he would not be coming, and he would return the week afterwards. After the doctor left, Rav Aharon said to his shamash, “The doctor is a good man! Even when he was in Switzerland, he went to ‘the synagogue.’ And why doesn’t he want to come on Pesach? Probably because he knows that I will offer him some food but he doesn’t ‘mish’ (eat in anyone else’s house on Pesach). Even though our custom is to mish, he doesn’t want to change his custom.” Thus, he made the doctor into a tzadik who made sure to daven in a shul and was strict with chumros on Pesach.
Mussar and Tochacha:
The middah of defending every Jew was evident even when he had to give mussar and tochacha. On Shabbos Parshas Shemos 5697, he began his drasha before Kriyas Hatorah by saying: “It is very difficult for me to give mussar to anyone but the Chasam Sofer said that since a Rov takes a salary from his congregation, he must say mussar when it is needed, just like a shamash of a shul must announce the times of the tefillos.” He continued, “Every Jew has an assumption of innocence. One can assume that no one means to sin, but people sometimes don’t realize they are doing something wrong. Therefore, I must tell you as follows...
Gentle Rebuke:
He once said that his father taught him how to rebuke a Jew. It should not be done with sticks or with harsh words. Rather, it should be done gently.
The Yeitzer Hara Forgot About Him:
The Shinover Rov zy”a was once walking in the vacation city of Marienbad with the Rov of Unsdorf zy”a when they saw Rav Aharon, who was then 19-years-old, walking towards them. The Shinover Rov said, “Who is this young man? It seems like the yeitzer hara completely forgot about him!”
Never Refusing a Jew:
There was a Belzer chasid named R’ Dovid Blum who was known as a big ba’al tzedakah. Every time he came to Belz, he would distribute large sums of money to all of the poor people of the town. One time, as his carriage made its way to Belz, he threw coins to the children, and once he got there, he had no money for a “pidyon”, so he asked the gabbai to lend him some money. Rav Aharon asked him, “Why did you give away all of your money without even leaving one prutah in your wallet for the pidyon?” He answered, “I cannot refuse a Jew!” The Rebbe repeated those words several times and then said, “A Yid who cannot refuse a Yid will always have a good life!” May the memory of the tzadik be a blessing for Klal Yisroel.
