After he grew up, he decided to travel to Europe in search of a rebbe and mentor. His father wondered, “Why am I not good enough to be your rebbe?” “A father cannot also be his son’s rebbe,” replied Rav Dovid Tzvi Shlomo. “So why don’t you take the Kosel as your rebbe?” asked his father. “I need a rebbe who can respond to me and give me answers,” insisted the son.
“The Kosel does give responses and answers,” his father protested.
“Tatty,” said Rav Dovid Tzvi, “when you say ‘Good Shabbos’ after Maariv, you do indeed hear a response – but I don’t.” He left for Europe as he had planned. Once there, he became attached to Rav Aharon of Karlin (author of Beis Aharon) and when he returned to Eretz Yisroel, he established his place of davening in the Karliner beis medrash.
He travelled often to Meron, especially for Lag B’Omer, and each time he would take along a list of names of his family members, friends and followers in order to daven for them. After the large traditional bonfire was lit, he would recite all the names, and then carefully fold up the list and throw it into the fire. After the paper would go up in flames, he would say that it was like Chazal’s statement (Avoda Zara 17) that the parchment is burned while the letters ascend on High. He once remarked that, when the fire is lit, the souls of the tzaddikim descend, and then rise back up again through the flames of the bonfire.
There was once a Yerushalmi who came crying to him about the dire situation of his sick son. “Go to the holy site of Meron and achieve your salvation at the tzion of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai,” ordered Rav Dovid Tzvi.
“But I have already been to Meron!” protested the Yerushalmi.
“Go back!” he replied. “Do you mean to tell me that if someone visited a doctor once, and isn’t yet healed, that he shouldn’t go back to the doctor again?!” The Yerushalmi returned to Meron, and his son was healed.
