The Baal Shem Tov's Pipe

During the time of the Baal Shem Tov, a tobacco pipe was one of man's most important possessions. In those days, the Jewish people were so poor, they barely had enough food to feed their families. So when a man would come to visit a friend, the host could at least afford to offer his guest a pinch of pipe tobacco and a cup of tea.

The Baal Shem Tov had a very special tobacco pipe. It was said that his pipe was so long that he could rest the pipe stem on the back end of the wagon while sitting on the seat and smoking.

And then there was the time that the Baal Shem Tov was traveling in his wagon with several of his followers and his wagon driver, Alexei, at the reins. They were smoking their pipes and discussing a concept of Torah. Suddenly, three soldiers of a local of governor approached them on horseback. When the soldiers got close to the wagon, they pulled out their swords and planned to steal some money from the Jews in the wagon.

"Listen up, we are the soldiers for the Governor and we demand twenty ruples for the right to travel on the Governor's road," the commander of the soldiers said with a snarl.

"We're sorry," answered Alexei, "but the Rabbi and his students don't have any money."

Just then, the soldiers noticed the Baal Shem Tov's pipe. "In that case we'll take this," said the commander, as he leaned down from his horse and snatched the pipe out of the Baal Shem Tov's hand. With that, they galloped off, holding the pipe in the air as if it were a sword.

No one in the wagon spoke. The students just sat, still feeling the fear from the encounter with the soldiers. The Baal Shem Tov seemed to be far off in a deep meditative state. As for Alexei, he reached under his seat and took a little nip from a bottle of whiskey he always kept there.

About an hour passed. The Baal Shem Tov looked around and said to Alexei, "Unhitch the horse from the wagon so that you can ride it. Then go (Bo) down the road in the direction that the soldiers went. When you finally catch up with them, take back the pipe and bring it back to me."

"But Rabbi, they aren't going to give me that pipe and they are armed!" said Alexei with a lot of concern in his voice.

"Don't worry," said the Baal Shem, "you'll be able to take it."

As Alexei rode of in the direction that the soldiers went, he wondered, "I sure hope the Master is right."

After riding for about an hour, Alexei saw the three soldiers sitting on their horses. He slowly approached them wondering how he was going to retrieve the pipe. But as he got closer, he saw that the three men were all sound asleep on their horses. Then he saw the Baal Shem Tov's pipe secured to the saddle of the commander of the soldiers.

Alexei rode up as quietly as he could and snatched the pipe from the saddle. Then, he rode away as fast as he could. When he returned to the Baal Shem Tov he was nearly out of breath.

"Well Alexei, what happened? Did you get the pipe?" asked the Baal Shem Tov.

Alexei handed him the pipe and said, "Rabbi, you won't believe what happened. They were all sound asleep on their horses."

"Oh Alexei, you know I'm a man of faith, I do believe that happened!" the Baal Shem Tov said with a warm smile and little chuckle in his voice. Now harness the horse to the wagon, take a L'chaim and we'll be off."

And so it was.

Freely adapted by Tzvi Meir HaCohane (Howard M. Cohn, Patent Attorney) from a story in Shivchei HaBesht as translated in In Praise OF THE BAAL SHEM TOV by Ben Amos and Mintz.

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BAAL SHEM TOV FOUNDATION

The Baal Shem Tov Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, uses emails, teleclasses and other material to spread and publicize the Torah of the Baal Shem Tov throughout the world. Please visit us at www.baalshemtov.com to learn more about the Baal Shem Tov and the work of the Foundation.

The goal of the Foundation is to hasten the imminent coming of the Moshiach (Messiah) by acting on the answer of the Moshiach to the Baal Shem Tov's question: 'When are you coming Master?' (The Moshiach answered) "When your teachings have become well-known and revealed throughout the world, and when your well springs have spread outwards, imparting to others what I have taught you, so that they too will be able to perform contemplative unifications and ascents of the soul…" [quoted from a letter from the Baal Shem Tov to his brother-in-law Rabbi Gershon Kitover.]

One of the major projects of the Baal Shem Tov Foundation is the World Wide Mezuzah Campaign whose goal is to insure that every Jewish person in the world has a kosher Mezuzah attached to the doorpost of their home.

Please visit www.mezuzah.net for more information.

Tzvi Meir is always available for questions and to support your work in this area.

Tzvi Meir Cohn (Howard M. Cohn, Patent Attorney)
21625 Chagrin Blvd. #220
Beachwood, Ohio 44122
800-613-0955
bst_times@baalshemtov.com
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The Baal Shem Tov’s Legends

By: Rabbi Tzvi Meir Cohn

The legends of Israel Baal Shem Tov, as well as the other Tzadikim (spiritual masters), were passed down for the last three hundred years, orally and more recently in writings from Chassid to Chassid. It's very important to remember that Chassid embody a fundamental belief that stories about their own Rebbe are definitely true, and those of other Rebbes are probably true. The closest analogy of how the stories were passed down to us in 1998, about 300 years from the Baal hem Tov's death in 1760, is the game called Telephone. A message is passed from person to person. When the last person tells the others the message, it has usually changed so dramatically from the message as it began, we get a good laugh. So just because Baal Shem Tov stories are the result of several hundred years of Eastern European Telephone, does that mean that the stories are not true? Well there is an old saying. "If you believe all of the Baal Shem Stories you're a fool, and if you don't believe any of them you are an epicoris (a disbeliever who was once a knowledgeable believer). No help in our quest for the Truth.

Let's look at a Maiseh (story) for the answer. Once, while the Baal Shem Tov was experiencing an aliyah (elevation) of the Neshamah (Soul) in the heavenly worlds, he encountered the Satan (the Angel in charge of our experiencing difficult situations). The Satan was strutting around studying a Sefer (book) and gesturing so that the Baal Shem knew the sefer contained the Baal Shem Tov's own transmission of the Torah. Upon return to his earthly body, the Baal Shem called together all of his close Chassidim (disciples) and inquired as to who among them wrote a sefer of the Baal Shem Tov's Torah. One of the Chassidim sheepishly came forward holding a small sefer (book) in which he had carefully recorded Torah teachings which he personally heard from the lips of the Baal Shem Tov. The Baal Shem Tov immediately sat down and read the entire Sefer. After he finished, he handed the Sefer back to the student and said "There is not a single statement that I said within this sefer."

Oil painting by Sarah Feldman

Comment:

Of course it’s impossible that a Chassid in the inner circle (generally brilliant scholars of exreme piety and with high spiritual awareness) could have made more than a slight mistake in recording the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov.

Rather, the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov were actually projections of spiritual vibrations that were enclothed, so to speak, in the garment of a Torah teaching or Story. Thus, the actual words or expressions, as spoken by the Baal Shem Tov, were not the point of what he spoke, but rather just a convenient mechanism to direct spiritual vibrations of different frequencies, depending on the circumstances, to the listener.

Today, the stories and teachings of the Baal Shem Tov serve the same function as over 250 years ago. That is, to direct spiritual vibrations onto our soul to heal any weak aspect of our soul body and enable us to intensify our service to G-d, i.e. to serve G-d while remaining in the spiritual flow that originates in G-d by living life b'simchah (with a joyful attitude).

Since the specific spiritual vibrations associated with each story still exists, my goal in presenting the stories is to connect the reader or listener to the original spiritual vibration still associated with that story and thereby affect some healing. Presently, few Beings are openly teaching and/or applying these healing spiritual vibrations. I have humbly attempted to present with a full heart a few stories with the intent to spiritually uplift my Brothers and Sisters of the Jewish Nation to heal them of any sickness, either of a spiritual or physical nature, and help them move quickly and effortlessly onto the path of a Jewish life with a Joyous attitude. And while on the path, I bless us to serve as beacons of G-ds light to help guide our soul brothers and sisters on their journey along the path to greet our Holy King Moshiach, May he come quickly in our days.

I bless everyone I've encountered along my path and pray for each of my Soul Brothers and Sisters that they enjoy a spiritual expansion and physical renewal of such an astounding degree that the only explanation can be that we truly are directly connected to the vibrational flow surging from G-d through the Universe. And I bless us that this realization be accompanied by our private, indisputable experience that the degree of spiritual expansion and physical renewal is proportional to the degree of joyous attitude we have during the living of our life.

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(Rabbi Tzvi Meir Cohn of Cleveland, Ohio is the executive director of the Baal Shem Tov Foundation. He can be contacted at cohn@baalshemtov.com)

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The Baal Shem Tov’s Legends, reprinted with the kind authorization of Rabbi Lazer Brody בס"ד of Breslev Israel.

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