The righteous Rabbi Chaim of Sanz would customarily deliver words of Torah during the third Shabbat meal. Afterwards, he would enter a state of deep spiritual cleaving and sit for a long time in silence, immersed in his thoughts, until he would awaken and begin to sing “Kel Mistater” (“The Hidden G-d”).
Once, while he was singing “Kel Mistater,” he was seized by a severe coughing fit. The tzaddik continued singing, even as the coughing grew stronger. His son, Rabbi Baruch, went and brought his father a cup of tea. The tzaddik pushed the tea away and said to his son, “what do you want from me? In the world of Atzilut, one does not drink tea!”
The son replied, “but in the world of Atzilut, one also does not cough.”
The tzaddik smiled and said, “you have bested me, my son,” and he drank the tea.
