Chassidic Stories

The suite was very expensive and usually reserved for nobility. But the Rebbe Maharash did not flinch at the exorbitant price and was soon escorted to his rooms.

“You want me to bring rain?” the Rebbe replied in surprise. “Am I G-d? The Talmud tells us that G-d holds three keys tightly in His hands—and one of them is rain!”

The young boy grew up to be one of the Alter Rebbe’s most illustrious students, Reb Peretz Chein.

R’ Nisan proceeded to administer the medication prescribed by the Baal Shem Tov, and by afternoon the count was showing significant signs of improvement.

As they walked, a well-dressed man approached them and asked the teacher from Mogilev, “Do you recognize me?”

The woman who approached the Rebbe was far from honest. But she needed help finding her husband.

How a late night prayer-service saved a lost soul that had fallen to the depths.

The Maggid announced: "There is a Jew who does not have matzah, and I cannot search for chametz until we find him."

For many years the inn had provided his family a decent living, but recently, the landlord had greatly raised the rent and it was straining his bottom line.

The Baal Shem Tov turned to his host and said, “I have a custom to dance during Shabbat dinner. Is it OK to dance now?”

Years passed, and one day a well-heeled gentleman knocked on the door of the Avtzon home. Taking a wad of cash out of his pocket, he offered it to the rabbi, “This is for you, and I want to beg your forgiveness.”

“I can’t give the evil inclination such a victory,” said Reb Shmaya, “so everyone leave me alone and let me die in peace.”

Many children were sick and dying despite all the efforts of the local doctor, and the townspeople were desperately seeking a spiritual remedy.

"If you have real claims against G-d," the Rebbe said, "then you need to take Him to a Din Torah (court case)."

The Rebbe picked up a note: “Who wrote this note? His name glistens and shines!”

“My pockets are practically empty,” the man said. “I only have one coin left.”

Eventually, the stress affected the butcher, and he died broken-hearted and exhausted.

The poor tailor became a beggar, and it seemed to the local population that he had lost his mind.

A transformation had occurred. Word soon spread that the innkeeper had delicious water in his well.

When I was newly married and living with my in-laws in Kotzk, I fell ill to the point of no return. The family sent word to my father in Biala that he should come immediately.

The inn, meanwhile, had undergone a drastic reformation. With his son in charge, it was no longer a quiet and sleepy roadside tavern. The local nobility began to frequent the inn and held their meetings, parties, and events there.

Zelig felt distant from his Judaism and contemplated his next move. Then he took a trip to his Rebbe…

"After the Jewish businessman left, the mother called her son and reprimanded him. The child looked at his mother in surprise. His eyes conveyed his thoughts: Mom, what’s the big deal? After all, he is just a Jew"

The thump of the bandit falling to the ground aroused the captive from his reverie. With the small amount of water he had, he managed to revive him from his faint.

When a matchmaker dispaired of arranging fitting spouses for the children of R. Levi Yitzchak, the rabbi replied with a keen spiritual insight.

This group of 12 worked seamlessly together, transmitting information back to the Rebbe, and quite a few evil decrees were subverted.

“You are young and agile; run after the thief and tell him that he can have the ring as a gift.”

As the visit wore on, a sense of unexplained anxiety seemed to overcome the groom.

“Oh Eliyahu, you’ve stopped praying with me, said the Baal Shem Tov. “Let me tell you why I repeated that verse over and over.”

The constellation of Chassidic heroes is crowded with great men. Less well known are the great women, whose influence has rarely been documented.

Head bowed and cheeks burning, overwhelmed by a sense of self-disgust, I accepted the verdict.

Another man, whom I didn’t recognize, sat opposite the rabbi, learning with him.

A delightful tale in which we learn how the actions of two simple Jews were felt miles away.

Why did Rabbi Baruch send the townspeople to receive a blessing from a perpetual drunk?

Rabbi Elazar of Kozhnitz would tell this tale, which illustrates the immense value and spiritual power of even a single mitzvah.

Silent looks were thrown around, frantically trying to pinpoint the one responsible.

They rested and grazed, and after a day or two, the rancher prodded them along to the fair where, plump and agile, they sold nicely.

For almost 20 years the innkeeper had avoided paying his annual dues to the baron from whom he leased the property.

An assortment of tefillin—some old and worn, others glossy and new—lay neatly arranged.

Reb Avraham was known to be a kind but a simple and almost illiterate Jew, barely able to follow the prayers or read Tehillim.

“Why are you worrying?” chuckled the rabbi. “Heaven directs everything, and there isn’t a person alive who knows what needs to happen or when.”

“The only question is,” the Rebbe murmured, “will that be before or after the incident?”

The Rebbe continued speaking, even as the clock ticked closer to midnight.

Whether it was a silver goblet, an ornate spice box, or the Shabbat candlesticks, all they could do was acknowledge the disappearance

At the age of 93, Reb Shlomo Rafaels was one of Sventiany’s oldest residents.

Scrunching his face with concentration, Ephraim enunciated each word again and again. He appeared to be begging for his life.

The widow approached the Rebbe Rashab, seeking his guidance…

To everyone, it was an impossible dream. But not for Reb Yekel.