Rabbi Shneur Zalman Boruchovitch of Liadi, author of the Tanya and the Shulchan Aruch HaRav, was born on the 18th of Elul 5505 (1745) to his father Rabbi Baruch and mother Rivkah. Even in his childhood, he was known as a great Torah prodigy. In 5524 (1764), he became the primary disciple of the Maggid of Mezritch, and after the Maggid's passing, he took Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk as his rebbe. When Rabbi Menachem Mendel made aliyah to the Land of Israel, and at his instruction, the Alter Rebbe became the leader of the chasidim in Russia and White Russia. He wrote the Tanya, a fundamental book in Chasidut in general and Chabad Chasidut in particular where it is known as "the Written Torah of Chasidut." Following denunciations by his opponents, he was imprisoned twice, and the day of his first release, the 19th of Kislev 5559 (1798), was established as a holiday and the New Year for Chasidut. On the 24th of Tevet 5573 (1812), while fleeing from Napolean, he passed away and was buried in the town of Haditch.
One of the chasidim of the holy Alter Rebbe was traveling by ship on the Dnieper River and felt himself becoming ill. He disembarked in the city of Shklov and turned to a renowned doctor. The doctor examined him and said that his illness was terminal. He advised him to travel home as there was no cure for his illness. The chasid decided not to travel straight home, for if his days were numbered, it would be better to travel directly to Lyozna, where the holy Alter Rebbe resided, at least to see his face before departing to the World of Truth.
The chasid arrived in Lyozna, entered the Alter Rebbe’s presence, and related that the expert doctor had told him that his days were numbered. The tzaddik said: “Everything is fine, it’s just a fever.” The chasid replied: “But don’t people who have a fever shiver?” The holy Alter Rebbe said: “Nu, if so, then shiver!” At that moment, the man was seized by trembling and shivers and his teeth began to chatter.
When his fever passed, he traveled home via Shklov and stopped by the doctor who had examined him before. The chasid said reproachfully to the doctor: “Why did you distress me so by predicting that my days were numbered? All I had was a fever, and the illness has already passed, and I am, thank God, alive and well!” The doctor replied, “It’s true that you had a fever. But there are two types of fever: one type presents with shivers and trembling, and there are various remedies for it. But with fever of the second type, the patient does not have a high temperature, but feels his strength ebbing away, and doctors have no cure for this type of fever. You had the second type, for which there is no cure! Please tell me, how did your fever become the simple type?”
The chasid related to the doctor how he decided to travel to his rebbe, and apparently, with his words, the holy Alter Rebbe transformed the terminal fever without shivering into a simple fever with shivering and by doing so completely healed him.
For each of the ten sefirot, especially the six sefirot of the heart, there is an associated angel that expresses its essence. The angel associated with the sefirah of beauty (tiferet), is the angel Raphael who is responsible for healing.
From the method of healing employed by the Alter Rebbe (which is also characteristic of other tzaddikim), we can learn the secret of the sefirah of beauty’s power. Tiferet is also the attribute of mercy, and it can soften reality and draw compassion into a situation full of harsh judgment. This is not about completely transcending and uprooting the laws of nature, but rather about a transformation that occurs within a given reality. In our case, it is about turning a terminal illness into a mild one.
As many tzaddikim have already expressed, there is power in a story about a tzaddik to affect the action described in it. It is therefore fitting to remember this story and to tell it whenever a difficult medical diagnosis is received. Life-threatening? Nu, it’s just a case of simple fever.
