Gedolim Be'Masayhem
Stories & Anecdotes
Rav Elozor Weissblum Pirkei D'Rav Elozor (Tammuz 28)
THE GENERAL OF GEHINNOM
The Dzhikover’s custom was not to draw out the third Shabbos meal too long into the night. One of the chassidim was in Krenitz and was an eyewitness to this custom:
He told how as soon as three stars appeared, they would bring candles to the Rebbe’s table (because the tisch was conducted in the dark) and the Rebbe related, “rebbe, Reb Elimelech used to conduct his sholosh seudos long, long into the night. Once, a general came to the rebbe’s tisch and tried to press rebbe, Reb Meilech to end the seuda and daven Maariv, but the rebbe paid him no heed. Because this ‘general,’ in fact, was the minister of gehinnom! But rebbe, Reb Elimelech did not fear him. I, however, do fear him, so I said, ‘Bring mayim acharonim and let’s bensch!’” (Mareh Aish #117)
ADAM’S SIN
The Rebbe Reb Zisha once asked his brother, “My beloved brother, in the holy writings it is written that all the souls were once included and contained in Adam, the first man. If so, we must also have been there at the moment he sinned and ate from the tree of knowledge. Why didn’t we prevent him from doing so?” The Rebbe Reb Elimelech answered him thus: “Brother, we were obliged to let him eat the fruit. If he had not, the serpent’s lie would still stand and would never have been proven false. The serpent said to him, ‘Your eyes will open and you will be as Hashem, knowing good and evil and able to create worlds.’ This is why Adam had to eat the fruit - once he did so, he saw that even though he had eaten of the fruit, he was still just a human being and no more.” (Ohel Elimelech 272)
THE WEDDING AT THE INN
When the two brothers the Rebbe Reb Elimelech and the Rebbe Reb Zisha were wandering disguised as beggars in self-imposed exile, they spent the night in a kretchma, an inn, in which a wedding was being celebrated. The two brothers were among the poor people who had gathered to partake of some of the food, as was the custom in those days. The wedding guests were a rough and crass bunch. Their spirits were merry from drink, and they began to poke fun at the unfortunate poor people. After each round of dancing, they summarily snatched up a poor man, threw him to the ground, and honored him with a string of abuse. Then they would start another round of dancing, throw the poor beggar once more to the ground, and treat him to another round of slaps and punches.
Since the Rebbe Reb Zisha was sitting nearest to the crowd, he was the honored recipient of the abuse. Rebbe Elimelech, sitting in the corner, was left alone while his hapless brother suffered the brunt of the abuse. In truth, Rebbe Elimelech was quite jealous of the suffering his brother had merited, for he was being given the opportunity to atone for his sins. He decided it was his turn to receive such an “opportunity.” He waited until Reb Zisha was sitting down after another bout of abuse and the crowd was busy dancing. He whispered into Reb Zisha’s ear, “My beloved brother, let us switch places. Sit here on my seat and I will sit on yours, and then you can rest a bit from the beatings you have received.”
They quickly switched places, and the rowdy group came again to snatch their victim. They were about to drag the Rebbe Reb Elimelech for a beating when one of the group shouted, “It isn’t fair to keep beating only this guest. Let us take that one who is sitting in the corner and honor him with a few blows so that he will be sure to remember this wedding!”
Sure enough, they once more grabbed the poor Reb Zisha from the corner thinking that he had not yet tasted a beating. After they had finished, the Rebbe Reb Zisha said to his brother, “See, my beloved brother, whoever is destined to be struck will be struck wherever he sits. They seek him out and deal him his due portion.” (Ohel Elimelech 177).
