STORIES FOR ROSH HASHANNA (By Yehuda Z. Klitnick)
**** The Mikva on Erev Rosh HaShana tips the scale in favor of the Yidden ****
There was once a shadchan/matchmaker who suggested a match between Rav Pinchas of Koretz's daughter and one of the young men from the heilige Rav Levi Yitzchak Barditchever's family. Rav Pinchas Koretzer was not so keen to the match and thought about it for some time, claiming that he did not think that the match was a good idea. After the Rav Pinchas sent word to call the shadchan. When the shadchan came he said that he agrees to the shidduch after all. He then explained what had brought about his change of heart: "Before the Yamim No'raim / Days of Awe, I saw a large wall erected in the Heavens between Knesses Yisrael/ the Yidden and Our Father in Heaven. This wall was a barrier that would have prevented our tefillos from ascending and being heard and accepted, Heaven forbid! Several Tzaddikim had tried their hands at canceling and annulling the decree – to no avail!
"However on Erev Rosh HaShana, when the heilige Barditchever entered the waters of the Mikva to purify himself for the oncoming heilige day, his kavanos/actions caused such a tumult, shaking the heavens, that this wall began to shake and fall apart! By the time he came out of the Mikva, the wall was almost totally collapsed and gone. I heard Hashem saying to the angels in Heaven, so to speak, ‘Beware! Make sure that not a single brick or remnant of this wall remains. If Rav Levi Yitzchok sees this barrier, he will create a huge uproar in the Heavens, shaking them up and asking how anyone could even allow such a barrier to have been erected here in the first place!'
When I recognized his elevated level and ability to recede the harsh decree, I decided that It would be an honor to have my daughter join this family together through marriage!” (Maamar Mordechai Nadvorna Rebbe)
*****Reb Zisha did Teshuva and caused a Yid to do teshuva*****
There was once a Jew who heard about the great Rebbe Reb Zisha of Hanipoli, it was during the days of awe and repentance around Rosh HaShannah time and he traveled to meet the Rebb in person. When he arrived in the beis midrash he found Reb Zisha wrapped in Tallis and Tefillin reciting viduy, the confession while at the front of the shul an amazing spectacle was taking place: a man lay there on the floor wracking with sobs and crying out "O woe for me I am a sinner and a criminal and a good for nothing," as he sobbed and cried he banged his fists into the floor and writhed in sheer agony! Witnessing the newcomer's obvious bafflement, Reb Zisha turned to him and explained, "there was this man that was a grievous sinner, finally they caught him in the act and they brought him to Zisha, but he still refused to confess and own up. Zisha tried to get him to repent to no avail, finally Zisha saw no choice so I bound and attached my soul to his and as Zisha recited viduy and confessed all of his terrible sins, the man became a baal teshuva." Eventually he became a true baal teshuva. (Siach Sarfei Kodesh) Tzaddikim were able to cause Yidden to do Teshuva standing in their place in shul. It is brought down that Rav Aharon Hagadol of Karlin made 84,000 Baalei Teshuva. The explanation given to this: Rav Aharon stood in front of the Aron Hakodesh and said a Drasha on Teshuva and thousands of people heard the Drasha and thay all did Teshuva.