21 Tevet · Yahrzeit
Rabbi Yisrael Dov Ber of Veledniki - Baal Mofet (Miracle Worker)
Rabbi Yisrael Dov Ber of Veledniki - Baal Mofet (1789-1850), author of "Sheerit Yisrael", which consists of 3 parts, one of them about repentance during the days of the "ShoVaVim" fasts.
Yahrzeit - 21 Tevet
Burial place - Veledniki, Ukraine
He was born in the village of Staraya Kotelnya, located between Berdichev and Zhitomir on the Guyva River (along road No. 0601 from Zhitomir to Skvira).
In 1789, in Kotelnya, a son was born to the melamed Rabbi Yosef and Perl Gita, and he was given the name Yisrael Dov Ber.
When he was about four years old, his father, Rabbi Yosef, passed away, and when he was around nine, his mother's soul also ascended to Gan Eden, leaving little Yisrolik a complete orphan.
It is told that before her death she called him to her and asked him to bring her a certain book. This surprised him greatly, since he knew well that his mother could not read Hebrew - and there were no other books in the house. So he asked her which book exactly she wanted. His mother said it did not matter, whichever one came to hand first - and her son handed her a hefty volume of the responsa of the Rif.
Taking the book in her hands, she said: "Holy letters, plead before the Almighty for my little son Yisroel Ber, that he grow up to be a G-d-fearing Jew..." - for she already knew that she had little time left in this world. Many years later, Rabbi Yisrael Dov himself told this story to a woman who asked for his blessing for her son: "that he grow up to be like you." After telling the story, he said: "If you are like my mother, then your son will be like me."
Even then he became known as the "illuy of Kotelnya."
When he was 12 years old, it happened that the holy Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl was detained for 9 days in nearby Zhitomir. In the synagogue he asked the talmidei chachamim studying there: "Which of you can complete an entire tractate of the Talmud by tomorrow?" No one was ready to take on such a burden. Then he turned to the young Yisrael Dov: "Can you do it?" He immediately replied: "If the Rebbe says so, I will complete it!" The Chernobyler asked which tractate exactly he wanted to study, and in response heard: "Whichever one the Rebbe wants."
The Chernobyler turned to the shelf, took out tractate Bava Batra, and handed it to Yisrael Dov.
He sat all night by candlelight with the book - and by noon the next day he came to the Chernobyler to complete it. Seeing the astonishment in the tzadik's eyes, he said: "The Rebbe may test me - I even remember the number of names of all the Tannaim and Amoraim in this tractate, both overall and on any given page."
At the age of 13 (his Bar Mitzvah in 5562), he went to the town of Pogrebishche, where the holy Rabbi Shalom Shachna, son of the holy Rabbi Avraham "the Angel" and grandson of the Great Maggid of Mezeritch, lived at the time. Then for some time he studied under the tzadik of Lechovitz, and he himself always emphasized his influence, although his most significant teacher later became Rabbi Mordechai of Chernobyl.
After his marriage, Rabbi Yisrael Dov became the rabbi of the town of Veledniki (now Old Veledniki, since there is also a New Veledniki nearby) on the Norin River, a bit west of Ovruch.
He became known as the "Baal Shemom" of Veledniki from 1829, while his teacher was still alive.
His teachings were collected by the son of his student, Rabbi Alexander Sender, and published in a book called "Sheerit Yisrael" (Lvov, 5624). Approbations for the book were written by Rabbi Aharon of Chernobyl and Rabbi David of Talne (sons of Rabbi Mordechai of Chernobyl).
"Sheerit Yisrael" consists of three "gates":
1. Obedience and devotion to tzadikim;
2. Teachings for the festival days;
3. On repentance during the days of the "ShoVaVim" fasts.
Everywhere in his book "Sheerit Yisrael" where he says "I heard from my teacher" - he means the holy Rabbi Motele of Chernobyl.
Here is one example of the author mentioning his teacher's father, the holy Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl:
"Sheerit Yisrael" (Shaar HaItkashrut, Drush 6, maamar 1):
"It is stated in tractate Chullin 17b:
'Rav Sheshet would test (the shechita knife) with the tip of his tongue' - one could say that during a meal, when he touched the food (meat) with the tip of his tongue, he would immediately know the quality of the knife's sharpening beforehand (i.e., before the shechita of that meat). As happened, for example, with the holy Rabbi Nachum of Chernobyl. When a chicken was slaughtered for him, while eating it he could sense all the thoughts of the shochet during the shechita, and so on."
Once the Veledniker said to his students about himself:
"When a cow passes by the window of my house, just by looking at it I can know all the deeds of its owner from the day of its birth up to that day."
The segula of the Rebbe of Veledniki for zera shel chaya ve-kayama (the birth of a healthy child).
The Rebbe told the following story: "Once a Jew came to the holy rabbi of Veledniki (who was 'a poilisher guter yid') and asked for a blessing for 'zera chaya ve-kayama' (that a healthy child be born). The holy rabbi of Veledniki told him to hang silk curtains in his bedroom, as a segula for the birth of a boy.
Later his students asked him - where is it written that silk curtains are a segula for the birth of boys? The Veledniker Rov answered them that it is written 'mefurash' in Asader Li-Seudata: 'Vilein Milaiyo - Ye'on Li-Rkiayo' - that is, when they hang ('li Rkiayo') the curtains ('milaiyo' in Aramaic refers to something made of silk fabric) - then 'taman man sharyo?' (who will be there?) - 'alo au shimsho!' (shemesh-zun in Yiddish means both 'sun' and 'son') - meaning boys will be born..."
When the Chabad chasidim at 770 heard this "pshetl," they laughed - but immediately fell silent, because the Rebbe said with a very serious face: "In this case, the 'cleverness of the tzadik's explanation' was completely beside the point - what matters is that that chasid listened to his Rebbe, and indeed a son was born to him!!!" (The trick isn't in the explanation - the trick is that he later had a son.)
Among the chasidim listening to the Rebbe's story at that moment were three young Chabad chasidim who also had problems having children. One of them took the Rebbe's words very seriously and decided to do the same in his own home. The other two laughed at him. The first one had a son born to him, while the other two, unfortunately, remained childless. (This story, with names and details, is recorded in "Heichal Negina.")
In "Siach Zkeinim" it is written that Gaon Rabbi David Tzvi Hen had a son born to him, but the next pregnancy ended in miscarriage. At that time it was customary for husbands to travel for a blessing to the Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek, while the wives would go to the tzadik of Veledniki. So his wife, together with her "companion," went to Veledniki. When they came to the tzadik, she said that her husband had been in Lubavitch and received a blessing from the Rebbe - but the child had not survived. The tzadik promised her that she would give birth to a daughter. When asked what name to give her, the tzadik answered: "Nokh mayn mome" (after my mother). When she asked for his mother's name, he answered "Perle Gite" (and this, incidentally, is the only source from which we know his mother's name).
When her companion asked for a blessing for children, the tzadik, showing her his palm, said: "When hair grows here on my palm, you will have children! You should not have killed cats as a child."
In the book Beis Rebbe it is stated that after the passing of the Mitteler Rebbe, some Lubavitcher chasidim traveled to Veledniki to ask Rabbi Yisrael Dov to become their mentor. He sent them back to "the holy Rabbi Mendel" (the Tzemach Tzedek), and afterward lamented:
"What is this?! How can they live only by the mind, without emotion?! The great 'Baal HaTanya' gave his chasidim the very best rifles, the very best gunpowder and bullets, and taught them to shoot - yet they don't want to; they just fiddle with the rifles like toys."
On 21 Tevet 5610 (1850), the pure soul of the tzadik Rabbi Yisrael Dov departed from this world. He is buried in Veledniki.
It is said that before his death he promised help to anyone who would even just hold onto the "handle" of the door of his ohel (mausoleum).
The Tzadik's Resting Place
During the Second World War, the Nazis wanted to turn the tzadik's mausoleum into a fuel storehouse, ignoring the protests of local residents. When they tried to break the headstone, which was in the way of placing barrels of gasoline, one of the men breaking it died on the spot, and another became disabled. But even though they failed to break the headstone, several barrels were still squeezed in, one on top of another - and on the very first night, one of the barrels crushed a guard to death. The officer in charge of the fuel laughed at his subordinates' fear and said that he would spend the next night in the mausoleum himself. What exactly happened there is unknown, but the fuel depot was removed from the mausoleum.
When the Red Army recaptured Veledniki from the Nazis, not a single house remained intact - the artillery from both sides had leveled everything. Except for the tzadik's mausoleum! It was from there that the Soviet authorities began rebuilding the town. But they too decided to play with fire - they decided to demolish the mausoleum. Workers came and began digging under the walls of the mausoleum - but by morning all the trenches were found filled in with earth again! This continued a couple of times - until the authorities gave up.
Even in Soviet times, Jews traveled from afar to visit his grave. Before me even now lies a two-kopeck coin (from 1988), which about eighteen years ago the late Reb Nisan (Uncle Nyuma) Sherman gave me as a "segula li-yeshua." He would travel every year to the Veledniker's grave from Kishinev. Upon arriving, he would place this coin on the gravestone, pray, and upon leaving, take it back with him - this, he said, was the Jewish custom in those days! "Always carry this coin in your wallet - and the tzadik will always help you." (Eliyahu HaKatan Getz)
Once two chasidim, traveling on business, had to stop in the town of Veledniki. One of them said to the other: "Since we're here, let's go visit Rabbi Yisroel Dov Ber, of whom they say he is a tzadik and a miracle worker." His friend replied somewhat dismissively: "Such a 'tzadik' should be laid out on a bench and given a good whipping!" Nevertheless, on Shabbat, at the third meal, they went out of curiosity to the tzadik's house. Many people had gathered there, and it happened that both friends ended up standing behind the tzadik's back.
While speaking words of Torah, Rabbi Yisroel Dov Ber suddenly said: "Whoever does not accept the words of a tzadik is as if he does not accept the Shechinah." Those present did not understand whom he meant, and the two chasidic friends thought to themselves: "That surely doesn't apply to us - after all, we have our own Rebbe."
Rabbi Yisrael said again: "Whoever does not accept the words of a tzadik because he thinks he has a different Rebbe is as if he does not accept the Shechinah." The chasidim felt that this evidently referred to them, but they still thought to themselves: "Perhaps among this whole crowd there is someone else the Rebbe is hinting at? He doesn't even know us at all!"
The tzadik said a third time: "Whoever does not accept the words of a tzadik because he thinks he means others is as if he does not accept the Shechinah." The visitors thought: "But maybe the Rebbe really isn't talking about us? He can't even see us!"
Then Rabbi Yisroel Dov Ber repeated a fourth time: "Whoever does not accept the words of a tzadik because he is standing behind his back and thinks the tzadik doesn't see him, is as if he does not accept the Shechinah! - and he added: - Whoever does not accept the words of a tzadik and thinks he should be whipped on the back, is as if he does not accept the Shechinah!"
Segulot
1) A segula connected with the Rebbe of Veledniki - house keys and a coin for good luck are placed on his grave - then taken back and carried with you at all times.
2) A segula for good luck - lighting a candle for the Rebbe of Veledniki, mentioning his mother's name - "Perle Gite".
(based on an article by Eliyahu HaKatan Getz)