The Torah urges us to remember the past and learn from it, and to learn from the older generation on how to conduct oneself.
(האזינו לב,ז)
The Frierdiker Rebbe writes: The avoda of learning from the ways of talmidei chachomim used to be accomplished at chassidishe farbrengens, where eltere chassidim would relate sippurim (stories and recollections) about tzaddikim and chassidim. They would discuss the lesson to be learnt and arouse their listeners appropriately, ensuring that the arousal would be translated into action. Telling sippurim was therefore cherished by our Rebbeim and by other great tzaddikim of Chassidus.
On one occasion the Frierdiker Rebbe said: Remembering 'the days of old' was always precious to chassidim. Homes used to be saturated with middos tovos and ahavas HaShem, ahavas haTorah and ahavas Yisroel, and no matter whether people were rich or poor, their doors were always open for chachomim.
In the past, he added, eltere chassidim would speak on their own without being asked. This was not mere storytelling; rather, a way of life was shared.
(אג"ק מוהריי"צ ח"ו ע' עה, לקוטי דיבורים ח"א ע' 234)
In the year תש"ב (1942), the Frierdiker Rebbe once said, "Today, when the present is unpleasant, we must live with the past."
The mashpia Reb Shmuel Levitin asked, "Is this the same as learning from the past?"
The Frierdiker Rebbe replied, "This is something different – to live with the past means to relive an incident which has once been experienced. The chossid Reb Dovid Tzvi Chein once cried out, 'Oy Rebbe!' and fainted. When roused, he related that he had recalled a certain yechidus with the Tzemach Tzedek."
The Frierdiker Rebbe concluded, "If a negative experience impacts a person, surely so with a positive experience."
(סה"ש תש"ב ע' 92)
THE FOCUS OF THE STORY
Once, after returning from the kever of the Baal Shem Tov, Reb Mendele of Rimanov prided himself – the Baal Shem Tov had appeared to him. When word about this reached the Degel Machane Efrayim, who was the Baal Shem Tov's grandson, he was disturbed by it. Reb Mendele therefore set out to make a reconciliation.
When he arrived, the Degel Machane Efrayim, without inviting him to sit, turned to him and asked, "Where am I now?"
Referring to where the tzaddik was then situated in his thoughts, Reb Mendele said, "In Yerushalayim."
"And now?" the Degel Machane Efrayim continued to ask.
"In the Beis HaMikdosh."
Impressed, the Degel Machane Efrayim then asked if he had truly seen the Baal Shem Tov. When Reb Mendele confirmed that he had, he inquired about what the Baal Shem Tov had said, and was told: "He is disturbed that people only recount his miracle stories and not the stories of yiras Shamayim from which lessons can be learned."
Hearing these words, the Degel Machane Efrayim invited Reb Mendele to sit down at his side.
(ילקוט חדש ע' קעח)
UNDERSTANDING THE LESSON
The Frierdiker Rebbe said, “All matters of Chassidus are reached through hard work. Even a chassidishe story requires toiling to derive the lesson in understanding and avoda."
(לקו"ד ח"ב ע' 706)
The Tzemach Tzedek would often send yungeleit to the esteemed chossid Reb Hillel Paritcher to be directed in the ways of Chassidus. Reb Hillel would entrust the guidance of each newly-arrived yungerman to two senior yungeleit, who in addition to explaining the basics of Chassidus, would most importantly tell them stories about the Rebbeim and about chassidim of former generations. In fact, they would retell each story several times until it penetrated the yungerman and he knew its details perfectly. They would then ask what lessons – in correcting one's middos, in yiras Shamayim and in hashgacha peratis – could be learned from the story. They would urge the yungerman to toil, as one does in serious study, in order to discover the lesson, and they would help him in this. Finally, they would tell him what lessons they had been told by their own madrich, Reb Hillel.
On the first three Shabbosim of each newly-arrived yungerman, Reb Hillel would relate a story in addition to the Chassidus that he delivered. After the story they would sing niggunim, and then discuss the lessons to be taken in avoda of the heart and the mind.
Reb Hillel explained the reason for this procedure: "The beginning of avoda is 'Adam ki yakriv mikem,' – a person has to offer something of himself to HaShem. However, in order to enable a person to know he is an Adam and how an Adam should conduct himself, the above avoda, in Sefer Vayikra, is preceded in the Torah by the sippurim of Bereishis and Shmos."
(אגרות קודש מוהריי"צ ח"ד ע' נ"א)
CONSIDER
What's the difference between storytelling and sharing a way of life? Or between learning from the past and living with it?
Why is it necessary to analyze a chassidishe maiseh? Why isn’t it enough just to get inspired?
