There was once a wealthy Jew who lived on the outskirts of town, having intentionally built his mansion there so the poorer villagers would not disturb him. His attitude was instilled in his family, and they too shunned their less fortunate brethren.
At the same time, the wealthy miser had a great love for Torah study. To indulge his love of learning, he built a beautiful study hall on his property, and every day would mingle with the Torah scholars who came to study there.
One day a scraggly-looking stranger appeared in the study hall. It was obvious that he was learned, but what no one knew was that he had once been rich himself. After losing his fortune he had begun wandering from town to town, with one cardinal rule: he would never ask for food. If someone offered him a meal he would accept it, but he would never be the one to initiate the request.
The wanderer was very weak when he entered the study hall. Three days and nights had already elapsed without food passing his lips. Surely someone would invite him home and feed him...
The stranger joined a group in the midst of a lively Talmudic discussion. Everyone was astounded by his erudition, especially the miser, who enjoyed conversing with intelligent people. The hours passed, and soon it was time for lunch. By the time the poor man was invited to the home of the miser to continue their discussion, he was almost delirious from the prospect of eating.
The miser went to wash his hands but did not ask the poor man to join him. A sumptuous meal was served, but only a single portion. The stranger was shocked. After taking a bite of bread and eating a slice of succulent roast, the miser returned to their previous conversation. "Now, what were we discussing?" he asked, oblivious to his guest's discomfort.
By that time the stranger was having difficulty not fainting. He was about to break his pledge and ask for food when with his last ounce of strength he stood up, apologized, and stumbled outside.
When a few minutes passed and he did not return the miser went to the window, and was surprised to see a large crowd gathered in front of his house. "What happened?" he asked. "What's going on?"
"A pauper just died in the street," he was told. "From the looks of it, he seems to have starved to death."
The miser was stricken to the core. Only now did he realize how base and cruel he had been. Overcome with remorse, he closed himself in his room and wept till he fell asleep from sheer exhaustion.
In a dream, the pauper appeared to him and said, "Know that because you caused my death, it was decreed that you should pass away immediately. But because I pleaded for mercy on your behalf, I have been permitted to reveal to you how you can make amends." The miser agreed to do whatever he was told.
"Tomorrow you must tell your family that you are leaving on a business trip for one year. After you have left town you must change your appearance, dress in rags, and return to your own study hall. There you must stay for an entire year, learning Torah, praying and doing teshuva, repenting, for your misdeeds. When you need to eat, you may only appeal to your own household. But you must never reveal to them your true identity."
The miser was thankful for the reprieve and did exactly as he was told.
Funny how one's perspective was different on the other side of the fence... When the miser knocked on the door of the mansion and asked for a crust of bread he was sent away. He knocked again, only to be beaten and cursed. It wasn't until he announced that he would not leave the premises that they relented, and handed him some crumbs of bread.
The miser rejoiced over this meager offering as if he found a great treasure, and two days later returned for more. As time passed the family came to regard him as a harmless lunatic. The children looked forward to his visits so they could pull his beard and pour water over his head.
The miser suffered these indignities in silence, aware that he alone was to blame for his children's mischief.
At the end of the year the former miser put on the same clothes he had been wearing when he left and returned home. The first thing he did was to arrange a feast for all the important personages in town, and he expressly invited all the poor people to participate. In front of everyone he related the story of what had happened to him, and with tears in his eyes announced that henceforth his home would be open to all. Every day, he would feed as many poor people as showed up on his doorstep.
That night he had another dream in which the dead pauper appeared to him, but this time he was smiling. "Happy is your lot for having achieved a complete repentance," he informed him. "And you should know that you have also brought rest and repose to my soul."
