Keeping the Tooth to be able to Eat Matzoh:
The following story is related in Sefer Toldos Harav Hakadosh M’Reisha (page 98):
The son of a Rebbe once came to daven in the bais medrash of Rav Elazar of Reisha zy”a. The young man was holding the side of his face with his hand and the Rav Elazar could tell that he was in pain. He called him over and asked him what was wrong. The young man replied that he had a terrible toothache.
The Rebbe told him to open his mouth and he took a look at the tooth. He then placed his hand on the tooth and said, “It’s nothing. You’ll be okay.”
Later that day, the tooth was hurting so much that the man forgot the Rebbe’s statement that it would be fine. He went to see a dentist, who tied one end of a string on the tooth and the other to a door handle. He then extracted the tooth by slamming the door shut.
After he returned home, he remembered that the Rebbe had told him that it would be okay and realized that he had disobeyed him. He was very afraid that when he went back to shul for Minchah, the Rebbe would ask him how his tooth was feeling, and he wouldn’t know what to say. He first thought that he would just say that it felt better but he decided that he couldn’t lie to the Rebbe. He realized that he had to say the truth and face the consequences.
As soon as he walked in the door of the bais medrash, the Rebbe called him over and asked how he was feeling. He told him the truth, that the pain was so great that he forgot what the Rebbe had said and he went to a dentist who extracted the tooth. The rebbe then clapped his hands and said, “Oh no! Who knows if after you pass away, whether this tooth will call you to judgment. You could have used this tooth to fulfill the mitzvah of eating matzoh for many more years, but you took that away from it.”
The Taste of the Matzoh:
Sefer M’Zekeinim Esbonen (page 318) relates that the holy derech of the Apter Rov zy”a included eating a great amount of food. One year, he became very sick and the doctors forbade him from eating matzoh and maror due to his weakened state. His sons watched him at the Seder to make sure he didn’t eat too much. They gave him only exactly a kezayis of matzoh and maror, and wouldn’t allow him to have any more.
The Rebbe then told them, “All the food that I eat all year taste like wood to me. The only things that have a taste for me are the matzoh and maror and the kezayis of challah I eat in the sukkah. And you want to take that away from me?”
Tikkunim Through Emunah Peshutah:
It was once revealed to the Maharal of Prague zy”a that there was a simple water carrier who made all the same tikkunim at the Seder that he did. The only difference was that the Maharal knew what he was doing and had all the holy kavanos in mind, while the water carrier didn’t know anything about these things. Rather, he performed the mitzvos with emunah peshuta.
We learn from this that emunah peshuta can create the same tikkunim in Shomayim as one can create through having in mind all the holy kavanos.
