Illustration of the Chida, 1724-1806
Rav Dovid Sutton shared a story that was relayed by the Mekubal, Rav Ovadiah Hadayah, zt”l. In the times of the Chida, Rav Chaim Yosef Dovid Azulai, zt”l, there lived a Talmid Chachom who suffered from terrible illness and pain. In despair, he decided to visit the Chida and ask for a Brachah.
When he entered the Chida’s Bais Medrash, he found the great Tzadik giving a Shiur on a certain topic in the Gemara. Not wanting to disturb, he sat quietly in the back of the room, waiting until the Chida finished. His journey to the Chida had been a long and tiring one, and in the warmth of the Bais Medrash, this Talmid Chachom fell into a deep sleep.
Suddenly, he felt like he was dead. He was surrounded by his family and friends who were escorting him to his final resting place. They eulogized him, they asked his forgiveness, and then they turned back to their homes, and he was left alone. The quiet of the grave was soon broken as a Malach came to escort him to the Heavenly Court for judgment.
It’s a long way from this world to the next, and the Talmid Chachom found it exhausting as he walked with the Malach. When the Malach said it would take two days of walking to reach where they had to get to, the Talmid Chachom was shocked. He exclaimed, “Two days? I’m exhausted! I can’t walk much farther.”
As they were speaking, he heard the sound of a carriage approaching. He looked up hopefully, but saw it was sagging beneath the weight of its heavy load, which was a huge trunk. The Talmid Chachom asked the driver, “Could I possibly get a ride with you?”
The driver laughed, “Do you have any idea what is in this trunk? It’s filled with your Aveiros! Tell me, do you really want to ride with the Aveiros that will incriminate you?”
The Talmid Chachom stared in horrified disbelief. Could this really contain his Aveiros? Impossible! He hadn’t committed so many Aveiros in his lifetime! Again, the driver laughed, “And all this? This is nothing! There wasn’t enough room in my carriage for all of your Aveiros. There are dozens more coming after me!”
The Talmid Chachom saw that, indeed, more carriages were following on the road. As each of them passed he asked the driver what load he was carrying, and with a sinking heart, he heard the same answer. They were each carrying his Aveiros. Finally, the dismal procession of wagons came to an end.
Only one more coach drove up. It was a small one which carried a very small trunk. Almost in despair, the Talmid Chachom asked the driver what he was carrying. The response was, “Oh, this small trunk? It contains your Mitzvos.”
They made it to the trial, and the verdict seemed to be a foregone conclusion. On one side, stacked so high you couldn’t even see the top, were the boxes of his Aveiros, and on the other side, was the pitifully small box that held the Mitzvos.
A voice called out, “He shall be brought to Gehinom!” Two Malachim immediately appeared at this man’s side to bring him to where he would carry out his dreaded sentence. But before they could move, a Malach dressed in gleaming white appeared and demanded, “Where are you taking him?”
The Malachim replied, “To Gehinom.”
The Malach turned to the judges of the Heavenly Tribunal and said, “Have you taken into consideration the terrible suffering this man went through in the physical world?”
The judges began to leaf through the book of the man’s life. Seeing the suffering he had undergone they ordered that half of the crates that were filled with Aveiros be discarded.
“And what about the illnesses? Have you considered them?”
Again, the judges looked through the book, and again, they reduced the number of Aveirah crates.
“And what about the problems with his family?”
More crates disappeared.
“And his financial troubles?”
By this time the scale was almost equal. But the Aveiros still weighed heavy. The Malach looked at the scale and asked the judge. “Is there more Yisurim, suffering, that perhaps this man can go through?”
The man watched in disbelief. He could no longer control himself. “More suffering!” he screamed, “More suffering! Can’t I have just a little more suffering?” And then he awoke. He wasn’t dead. He wasn’t in the grave. He wasn’t facing the Heavenly Court. He was in the Bais Medrash of the Chida, who was just finishing up his Shiur.
The Chida saw the stranger and courteously asked him what he could do to help him. The Talmid Chachom told him with enthusiasm, “Baruch Hashem, I don’t need any help. I have everything I need, and I accept it all with love!”
Reprinted from the Parshas Chaya Sarah 5785 email of Rabbi Yehuda Winzelberg’s Torah U’Tefilah.
