THE MAHARAL’S MARRIAGE
I heard the following story from my forefathers. The Maharal married at age 32. He was engaged to the daughter of Rav Shmuel ben Rav Yaakov, a great and wealthy community leader, nicknamed Reich Shmelke (Wealthy Shmelke). He sent the Maharal to study in Premisla at the yeshivah of the Maharshal.
This Reich Shmelke had a son named Yehoshua Shmelke’s, who was the forefather of Rav Shmelke of Ostrog and Rav Shmelke Segal Horowitz, Av Beis Din Trani (ancestor of Rav Shmelke Nikolsburger and his brother Rav Pinchas, author of Hafla’ah), the son of Rav Yehoshua HaAruch Segal (nicknamed HaAruch – der hoicher because he grew taller every Shabbos and diminished Motzaei Shabbos).
Meanwhile, four tragedies befell the Maharal’s father-in-law to be in Prague, leaving him penniless. He then wrote to his future son-in-law that he was no longer able to keep his promises for support. “I therefore release you from this shidduch and you are free to take another proposal.” The Maharal responded, “I wish to take your daughter for my shidduch and I will wait for Hashem’s salvation. I will not be unfaithful.”
Meanwhile, the kallah opened a small store selling baked goods in order to have some means of support and sustenance for her aging parents in such a dire emergency situation.
One day, as the kallah sat selling her baked goods, a soldier on horseback rode up and speared a loaf of bread on the sharp point of his sword and prepared to gallop off with his prize. Terribly distraught, she grabbed hold of the horse’s reins to restrain the soldier, crying and pleading with him, “Please my good soldier, I beg you, I am a poor girl and my parents are elderly and destitute. The sale of this bread is our only source of income. Please do not steal the only means of sustenance we have!” The soldier replied, “I have not eaten for three days and I am starving. Here, take this coat as collateral, and if I do not return with two coins as payment for the loaf within twenty-four hours you can keep the coat instead. The kallah agreed, and when the soldier didn’t return, they found that the coat was lined with gold coins! They wrote back to the chasan, the Maharal, that he was welcome to come back and proceed with the chasunah because, due to this miraculous occurrence, they were wealthy once again. The kallah was then 28, and the Maharal was 32. Her name was Pearl, a flawless jewel (she is indeed buried next to the Maharal in the old Jewish cemetery in Prague; they share the same matzeiva.) (Megillas Yuchsin, Gevuras Ari pp 20-21)
TWO REBBES
My rebbe from Peshischa said that everyone needs to have two rebbes, one from this world and one from supernal worlds up above – Olam Ha’elyon. I understood that he was referring to the Maharal because he was telling us just then how he had been to his kever in Prague. He said that he had studied the Maharal’s sefarim before davening and that his tefillah that day was especially fluent and fluid. I heard that when he was at the Maharal’s kever in Prague, he asked for three things and promised that if they were fulfilled he would publicize the great value of the Maharal’s sefarim (Ramasayim Tzofim on Tana Devei Eliyahu Chap 18, cited in Gevuras Ari p10, footnote #24).
