Tag: Stories about prayer
Prayer, Scales and Rain
One can always find comfort in their service to the Holy One, blessed be He as their emunah (faith) is strengthened.
One should serve the Holy One, blessed be He with modesty and humility. We learn in Kedushas Levi: “It is right that a person should be modest in their service of the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written in the Morning Prayers, “Let a man fear the Lord in private….” But in order to lift up the holy sparks that are hidden in others, it may be necessary to reveal his own fear of the Holy One, blessed be He, for by this means he may turn them also to the fear of the Holy One, blessed be He. And this was the purpose of Israel’s wandering through the desert.””
One’s service to the Holy One, blessed be He is private and is no concern of others for no one can duplicate the service of one’s heart.
Many many years ago there was a drought in Eretz Yisrael. The skies were clear and the sun shined brightly. Water was scarce and the children cried from thirst.
The holy rabbi of Sfas called for a community fast and everyone was to be in the shul (synagogue) to prayer that haKadosh Baruch Hu (the Holy One, blessed be He) be merciful and bless the land with life giving rain.
The people prayed and fasted, but the skies stayed clear and no rain came.
That night as the rabbi slept he dreamed that the rains would come if the shopkeeper would lead the morning prayer.
In the morning when the rabbi woke, he dismissed the dream because the shopkeeper was not very learned and was not knowledgeable enough to lead the community in prayer. That day the sun’s heat was great
The same dream came to the rabbi again that night. This time he knew there was something special about the shopkeeper.
As everyone gathered in the shul (synagogue) in the morning, the rabbi called the shopkeeper and told him to lead everyone in prayer.
The shopkeeper looked at the rabbi and saw that he was serious and could not understand why he was to lead the prayer. The rabbi knew he could not even read all of the words of the morning prayers. The shopkeeper looked into the rabbi’s eyes once more and then burst out of the shul.
Many saw the shopkeeper as he ran out of the shul with his tallis (prayer shawl) waving behind. After sometime he returned carrying something hidden in his tallis. He went up to the aron kodesh (cabinet where the Torah scrolls are kept).
The shopkeeper opened the aron kodesh, kissed the sefer Torah and then removed from under his tallis the scales from his shop. Silence fell over the shul as the shopkeeper raised his hands towards the shamayim and began “Ribbono shel olam, Master of the Universe, hear me now. If I have ever mistreated anyone in my shop, let these scales be witness against me. Every day when I look at these scales I see Your holy name. As I look at the right pan I see a “yud”, the right pan and arm, a “hay”; the center post, a “vov”; and the left arm and pan, a “hay”. When I see Your holy name I think of the Torah and the many wonders You have provided to b’nai Yisrael. In your infinite mercy please grant the rains so that the people of Israel can sing your praises.
The skies grew dark and the rains came. The people wondered and asked the holy rabbi why this simple shopkeeper’s prayer was answered and not that of the community.
The holy rabbi answered that one should serve The Holy One, blessed be He with modesty and humility and many times our daily avodah becomes mechanical and it done by rote. The shopkeeper sees the greatness of The Holy One, blessed be He everyday and therefore serves him always in the words of the shema, “b’chol levavacha, uva’chol nasfshacha, uva’chol me’odecha (with all your heart, and all your soul and all your might)”
Let us all pray we can find comfort in our daily prayers as did the simple shopkeeper did many years ago in Sfas.
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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The Dirty Treasure
A wealthy man was set to embark on a lengthy journey to a distant land. He therefore packed many belongings, as well as food for the way, piling everything into his magnificent coach.
Before he set out on his journey, he called his loyal servant and explained, “I am leaving my home for an extended period of time, and I am appointing you to faithfully watch over it. I have but one request: that you take extraordinary care of my private office, as its contents are very dear to me. Please take extra-special care of it!” The servant agreed, and the wealthy man boarded his coach and set off.
When the clouds of dust from the coach settled, the servant entered the house and thought, “I wonder why my master ordered that I carefully guard his private office, there must be an item of great value hidden inside.”
The servant entered the wealthy man’s office and found a huge wooden chest sitting in the corner. The chest immediately caught his eye.
The servant opened the chest and saw a beautiful treasure consisting of silver and gold, precious gems, and pearls. But much to his surprise, the entire treasure was covered with mud.
“How odd,” the servant thought to himself. “On one hand, my master cautioned me to take special care of his precious treasure, yet on the other hand, he himself is so careless with it that he allows it to become filthy with mud.”
So it is with man. When the time will come for man to stand in judgment before the Heavenly Court, the innermost parts of his heart are examined. Were the thoughts in his heart pure, and did he serve G-d with love and honesty? For the heart is the most precious treasure contained within man’s body, and if it is revealed that his heart is covered with filth and mud, it is clue to the mundane thoughts that fill it.
How terrible will his humiliation and shame be at that moment.
Therefore, during Rosh haShanah and Yom Kippur we beseech the Holy One, blessed be He “who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do” (Ps. 33:15) Create in me a pure heart, O G-d, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (Ps. 51:10) — Master of the Universe, please make our hearts contain only love and awe for you and not any alien thoughts!
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)
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The Shepherd’s Flute
Many times we ask: “What is prayer?” It is indeed a difficult question to answer, but are we not taught: Only that man’s prayer is answered who lifts his hands with his heart in them. Taanis 8a
Another thought: Every word of your prayer is like a rose which you pick from its bush. You continue until you have formed a bouquet of blessings until you have pleated a wreath of beauty and glory to G-d.
A shepherd once grappled with the question of payer:
There once was a Jewish shepherd who was very simple and had very little understanding of Jewish prayer and traditions. Everyday he would go out to the fields with the sheep and as he watched the flock, he would sit on a rock and play upon his flute.
As the Jewish Holidays neared he saw many people traveling on the road going to the nearby city. Each day more and more people traveled down the road. The shepherd asked the travelers what was so special that they were going to the city for.
“We are on the way to a holy rabbi, to spend the holidays with the tzaddik,(a pious and righteous man), and pray that the Holy One, blessed be He answer our prayers with goodness, mercy and health.”
“Why is this so important?” asked the shepherd.
“Come with us and see how special the holy rabbi is”
The boy was uncomfortable, for you see he did not know how to pray. He only knew that he was Jewish and that there is a G-d who provides for all our needs. Not knowing what to do, the boy went into the woods with his flute to think and play a soulful melody. He thought and thought for a long time and decided to go with the people to meet this special rabbi.
The shepherd left the woods and the fields behind him as he walked down the road to the city. He did not know what to expect. He felt everyone knew more than him. He could not pray and did not even know the language of prayer.
He slowly made his way to the old wooden shul (synagogue) and saw that everyone was deep in prayer. The holy rabbi looked so sad. The shepherd carefully watched the holy rabbi who stood under his large tallis (prayer shawl) in front of the shul. It covered his head and body, and the boy saw him swaying gently back and forth. The shepherd began to sway as he thought to himself, “the grain in the field moves with the wind out of respect for the Creator of all things and this is how everything in the world is holy.”
The shepherd sat when everyone else sat he stood up when they stood up, but the holy rabbi was different. He seemed to be shivering and standing most of the time. The young boy felt that each person in the old wooden shul (synagogue) was able to pray to G-d but not him. At one point, every one was standing up and it was so quiet in the shul that the shepherd could actually hear his very own heart beating. He looked at the holy rabbi and saw on the floor a wet spot, the rabbi was crying. He felt an urge to do something, but what could he do? He could not read Hebrew, he knew no prayer. With streams of his own tears, he pulled out his flute and played a soulful tune to the holy One, blessed be He.
As he began his melody, the people in the shul (synagogue) were shocked. They turned in anger to look at this terrible violation of the holy prayer service. As they shouted at him to stop this terrible thing, the boy looked terrified. The holy rabbi, ran up to the boy and said, “Sha shtil (quiet, be still) no one is to say anything harsh to this boy for it is because of him that the blessings of Heaven are possible this day.”
The people were awed of the tzaddik’s words, as he explained “All day we have prayed, but not one prayer ascended to the heavens. The gates of the heaven were closing as the holiday was ending when suddenly, this boy in his innocence and pure heart and tears began to play his flute. He prayed with all his heart, with all his soul and with all his might and the doors of heaven opened up and our prayers were accepted.”
“We should learn from this simple shepherd and his prayer.” He took the young boy by the hand and led him to the front of the shul (synagogue) and together under the holy rabbi’s tallis they finished their prayers.
Everyone can pray with true devotion. Let us just open ourselves up and let our prayers and thoughts rise to G-d, for He hears all prayers.
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)
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Creating a Prayer – Shema and Pesach
One prayer unites Jewish people around the world – the Shema. The words of the Shema – Hear O Israel, the L-rd is Our G-d, the Lord is One – are said everyday.
Many rabbis and many more people have thought about the first sentence of the Shema. The Shema is a declaration of the Jewish people. It is an affirmation of faith, a vital part of the prayer service, and a meditation.
Every Jewish person can have a relationship with G-d as it says in the Shema “our G-d”. Pesach is a time when Jewish people come together to read the Haggadah and celebrate this joyous holiday.
One year, before beginning his own Seder, the holy rabbi of the village wandered through the village. He listened as people conducted their own Seders. As he walked down the cobble stoned alleys he heard the voices of simple Jewish families singing and reciting the narrative of the Haggadah. He stopped near the wooden shutters of one of the cottages and heard a voice reading aloud:
The Torah speaks of four sons: one wise son, one wicked son, one simple son, and one who does not know how to ask questions.”
Every time the reader came to the word for “one” — echad — he would cry it out aloud with prolonged concentration, just as people do when they say Shema Yisrael.
The holy rabbi was delighted at this approach. He commented later that this simple villager made out of the Four Sons of the Haggadah — including even the wicked son — a beautiful prayer. A sacred prayer as the Shema Yisrael.
Every year we read the words of the Haggadah: “All who are hungry, let them come and eat. All who are needy, let them come and celebrate the Passover with us.”
Let all of our prayers come together so that all Jewish people can unite as one and say the Shema and bring peace so that we can all celebrate Pesach in the Holy City of Jerusalem next year.
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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Prayer – A Matter of Life and Death
A group of wealthy merchants went into an inn located near the crossroads. They asked the innkeeper to serve them food and drink, and knowing that his guests had the ability to pay, he hastened to set the table for them.
“What would you like to eat?” asked the innkeeper.
One of them answered, “I would like a good, thick meat broth.” “I would like to eat fresh fish,” said another.
One by one, the merchants proceeded to order tasty delicacies, each one requesting the dish that he craved.
A weak voice was suddenly heard coming from one corner of the inn, “Please serve me bread, for I am starving!”
The guest who had made the request was a beggar who had happened to enter the inn at the same time.
The innkeeper left the group of merchants and quickly placed bread before the beggar.
“Should this beggar be served before us?” asked the merchants. “Why, we are ordering a massive feast, yet you prefer to serve him first?”
“You,” responded the innkeeper, “are ordering delicacies for yourselves. This beggar, is asking for bread in order to survive. Who knows how long it has been since he has last had something to eat.”
There are times when individuals who pursue their cravings and desires stand in prayer and make various requests in order to increase their assets and prestige in the eyes of the world.
Then there is the individual who tearfully requests bread for his young children.
The Holy One, blessed be He will most certainly give his prayer preference and answer it immediately, for the man is pleading for his life and the lives of his children!
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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A Prescription for Life
It is told that the king became enraged at a certain wise physician and gave orders to his servants to put him in prison in a place that was as narrow as the grave. At his order they put chains on him and an iron yoke on his neck. At the royal command they stripped him of his clothes and dressed him in rags and tatters made of the coarsest wool. The king ordered that the doctor should receive each day some barley bread with a spoonful of salt and a pitcher of water. The king further commanded the prison guards to listen to his words and report them to him. For this doctor was very wise and said nothing that was not full of wisdom.
He stayed a long time in prison without uttering a word, keeping silent. In due course the king instructed the kinsfolk and acquaintances of that sage to visit him in prison and talk to him, for maybe he would speak to them. So they went to him and said:
“Good master, we see your distress in this prison where you are yoked and shackled at your neck and legs, and how you hunger and thirst in your nakedness and are surrounded by all this torment. Yet we are astonished at your bright face which has not changed, while you have not grown lean and you are as strong as ever!”
The doctor looked at them for a moment or two and then answered them:
“I took seven drugs with me and mixed them together and from them I have made myself a potion of which I drink a little every day. That is what has kept me strong and unchanged.” “Tell us what those drugs are,” said they, “and if anyone of us should suffer such grievous torments as these we shall make a potion of them so that he should not perish.”
“The first drug,” said he, “is faith in the Holy and Blessed One who can deliver me from many evils and troubles, and He will deliver me from these and from the king, as it says in the Book of Proverbs (21:1): ‘Streams of water and the heart of the king are in the hand of the Lord to turn whichever way He desires.’ The second drug is hope. The third drug is: My knowledge that my sin caused this and I was trapped by my transgression, and I was the cause. That being so, why should I complain? The fourth drug is: If I do not wait patiently, what shall I do instead? Is there any other choice? If the king decrees that I must die, why should I die before my time? The fifth drug is: I know that it is for my own benefit that the Holy and Blessed One causes me to suffer in order to erase my transgressions in this world so that I may enjoy life in the world to come. The sixth drug is: I rejoice in my portion and give thanks and offer praises on account of it, since I might have been in even greater distress. Though I am chained and shackled it might have been worse, for they could have beaten me with whips or other torments. If I have barley bread to eat, it would have been possible not to receive bread at all, neither of wheat nor even of barley. They give me a measure of water, but they might not have given me any water at all. Though my garb is of coarsest wool, they could have left me naked. And the seventh drug is: I know that the salvation of the Lord can come in the twinkling of an eye since He is gracious and merciful, long-suffering and full of kindness and truth to him who can repent of wrongdoing; and He, may He be blessed, will deliver me from my distress and settle with my foes.”
May you be blessed and sealed for a sweet year of success, happiness and good things
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)
Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us
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Prayers from the Heart
A holy rabbi once taught that unless we believe the holy One, blessed be He renews creation every day, our prayers grow habitual and tedious. Sometimes we need to step back and reflect if our prayer is from the heart or is it from memory, by rote.
There was once a shepherd and did not know how to pray. Yet every day he said: “Ribbono Shel Olam, Master of the Universe! You know full well that if You have beasts to herd and were to give them to me I would tend them without charge though everybody pays me; for I love You.”
On one occasion a learned rabbi passed that way and found the shepherd praying. “Fool,” said he, “do not pray like that!” “And how should I pray?” asked the shepherd. At which point the learned man taught him the order of the blessings, and the “Hear, O Israel” prayer and the other prayers, in order that he should no longer say what he had been familiar to say. But after the rabbi went away, the shepherd forgot all that he had been taught and could not recite it. He was also afraid to say what he had formerly said, because the learned man had warned him not to.
Now in a dream at night the rabbi heard a voice that said to him: “If you do not tell him to say what he was accustomed to say before you met him, and if you do not go there, then know what evil is awaiting you. For you have robbed Me of one of those who is assured of the World to Come!” The rabbi went at once and told the man.
Now here there was neither knowledge of the Torah nor good deeds, merely one who thought to be good. The Holy One, blessed be He regarded this as a great thing, for the Merciful One always seeks the heart.
Sefer Chasidim
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)