The Maggid, Rav Boruch of Rika, was a melamed who hired himself out as a private tutor to teach Torah in the homes of various Yidden. He was being “interviewed” for a new position as private melamed in the home of none other than Rav Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev, mechaber of the Kedushas Levi. This is how Rav Levi Yitzchok checked out Rav Boruch: He had Rav Boruch undress and then Rav Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev examined each limb of his entire body, one at a time, for any “flaws”! Only once he had gone over his entire body and found him flawless did he allow Rav Boruch to be a melamed in his home. After the year ended, Rav Levi Yitzchok requested that Rav Boruch tutor in his home the following year as well, with one condition: “You must eat with me from the very same bowl.” The Maggid, Rav Boruch, replied that such a condition required him to think the matter through.
At the time, the two holy brothers, Rebbe Reb Melech of Lizhensk and Rebbe Reb Zusha of Hanipoli were passing through and the Maggid, Rav Boruch, took the opportunity to ask their opinion. He explained Rav Levi Yitzchok’s condition to his employment, that they eat together from the same bowl, and Rebbe Reb Elimelech answered him thus:
It says in the pasuk: “And Aharon and all the elders of Yisrael, with the father-in-law of Moshe, came to eat bread before Elokim.” (Shemos 18:12) The Gemora asks: why does it say “before Elokim”? Didn’t they eat before Moshe? Rather, whoever partakes of a meal where Torah scholars eat together is as if he benefited from the shining rays of the Divine Presence. Now, asked the Noam Elimelech, why does the Gemora think that this is such a question? Obviously they did eat before Hashem, since the entire world is full of His glory. The answer is that when one eats in the presence of a Tzaddik, his overbearing fear and awe of the Tzaddik overshadows the fear of Hashem. They feared Moshe – the Rav and Tzaddik – and thus their fear of Hashem was lacking. The Maggid understood from Rebbe Reb Elimelech’s answer that it is better to forgo always constantly eating with such a Tzaddik from the same bowl.
