Happiness Averts Tzaros
A child was choking on a coin, and his face was turning blue. His life was in great danger. The Chazon Ish exclaimed, “The only solution is to bring the child to the Ponovitzer Rav. Why? The Ponovitzer Rav is an expert in getting coins out of people, even from the tightest places...he is the man for the job.”
Someone asked the Brisker Rav zt'l, "What can one do to control his mind and avoid forbidden thoughts?" Everyone laughed, including the child, and by Hashem’s will, the laughter caused the coin to dislodge from his throat and come out.
About the incident, the Chazon Ish said, “Happiness saves people from all tzaros.”
Along the same lines, the Baal HaTanya was once imprisoned, and after fifty-three days, with Hashem’s kindness, he was released from jail on the 19th of Kislev. Sometime afterward, people tried to convince the government to reimprison the Baal HaTanya. The Baal HaTanya heard about this, and this caused him immense distress.
Reb Shmuel Minkas wanted to lighten the Baal HaTanya’s mood, so he suspended himself from a rope outside the beis midrash. It was an unusual sight, especially since this was below his dignity. People from all around came to watch the scene. “Why is Reb Shmuel hanging outside the beis midrash?” they wondered.
When the Baal HaTanya walked outside, he looked up and asked, “Reb Shmuel! What are you doing there?”
He replied, “Craftsmen hang samples of their products outside their shop so that people should know what is being manufactured inside. A cobbler hangs a shoe outside his store, a tailor hangs a suit outside his store, and so on. In this beis midrash, the Rebbe produces chassidim. I am hanging here as an example so that people who pass by will know what is manufactured here.”
The plan succeeded in getting the Baal HaTanya to laugh. Once R’ Shmuel saw his success, he knew his Rebbe would be back to himself in no time. The Baal HaTanya’s joy helped him get out of his sadness, and within a short time, he was saved from the hands of those who attempted to harm him.
