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The Yahrzeit of Rabbi Dov Ber “Maggid” of Mezeritch z‘l (1710?-1772) is commemorated on the 19th of Kislev. The following meise / hasidic tale appeared in Sefer HaHasidut, Meah Tzadikim, Raphael, Yitzchak, 1961, Tel Aviv. (Freely translated by Gabbai Seth Fishman.)

He Is Serving Hashem

Rabbi Dov Ber was destitute; his house lacked everything. His well-learned wife kvetched about it but, he did not pay heed to her words.

There was one time when she especially bugged him — and the Maggid groaned a heart-rending sigh.

A Bat Kol came forth from the heavens and declared:

“Dov Ber, because you have groaned regarding your severe circumstances, you have lost your portion in Olam Haba.”

Rabbi Dov Ber was happy to hear this, and he called out:

“Henceforth my serving of Hashem will not be in order to receive a reward.”

A Bat Kol again came forth from the heavens and declared:

“Dov Ber, you’ve restored for yourself your portion in Olam Haba.”

(From the mouth of Chasidim.)

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 3rd, 2013 at 5:24 pm and is filed under Meises. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.