The Besh’t Arrives to Heal Rabbi Chayyim
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The Yahrzeit of Rabbi Chayyim Tirar of Chernowitz z‘l (1760-1817) is commemorated on the 27th of Kislev. The following meise / hasidic tale appeared in Sefer HaHasidut, Meah Tzadikim, Raphael, Yitzchak, 1961, Tel Aviv. (Freely translated by Gabbai Seth Fishman.)
The Besh’t Arrives to Heal Rabbi Chayyim
Once, the Rav, the holy Gaon, Rabbi Chayyim Ztz‘l, head of the Court of Chernowitz was very sick.
For a long while, he was bed-ridden with his sickness until, finally, the doctors gave up all hope for him.
After three days of just laying there without opening his eyes or making a sound, all of a sudden, he lifted his head, sat up in bed and shouted aloud: “Oy, oy!” startling the people in the house.
One approached him and asked: “Rabbi, what are you shouting about?”
“Oy,” he replied, “Do you not see? For the Besh‘t z‘l is standing right here before me.”
Now, the man was seriously concerned to hear these words, however, he was relieved to see that from that moment, the illness began to lift, and his health gradually was restored.
Later, Reb Chayyim shared the story of what had happened to him and, he said that just before his neshamah departed, he could see himself walking in the upper worlds where he saw the Besh‘t z‘l and spoke to him, saying:
“Rabbeinu, do me a favor, so that Hashem yitbarach will heal me.”
The Besh’t answered him:
“My son, if the decree has already been cast, what then can I do?”
“And I answered him:
‘One time, I created the conditions that made it happen that the Tzaddik Rabbi Yechiel Michel of Zlotchov, z’l, told of some matter that honored you at shalosh seudos and his word about you was certainly enjoyed by you.
‘If so, you owe me a favor.’
“He answered me:
‘You are right, this I will do! I will bless you and, trust me that my blessing will not return empty.'”
And so it was.
(The Book of Tzaddikim Dwellings)