While he was still a child, the Me’or Einayim zy’a was already recognized for his greatness.
It is related that when he was a boy, he saw in the writing of Rav Odom Baal Shem a holy name of Hashem that could be used to resurrect the dead. The shamash of the shul, with whom he had been very close, had recently died, and this pained him very much. He said the holy name, and the shamash came back to life.
When the residents of the city saw the dead man walking, they panicked. They didn’t know how to respond to this crazy sight and asked the ghost how he had returned to life. He told them that someone had resurrected him by saying a holy name, and they told him that it would be best if he went back to his final resting place.
He said, ‘I can’t do that. Only the one who brought me back to earth can send me back to the grave.’
They asked who it was who had said the name and he told them that it was the young boy named Nochum. They ran to the boy and asked, ‘What have you done?’
He said, ‘I didn’t mean anything. I saw in a sefer that this name can bring back the dead and I wanted to see my friend again, so I said it.’
They asked him to say another name in order to let the dead man go, and he did.