The Stone That Couldn't Fit
From
Tovos Zichronos (Memoirs of HaRav Avraham Sternhartz zt"l)Translation by
Chaim Kramer
Reb Pinchas Yehoshua was the son of Reb Isaac the scribe, a close disciple of Reb
Noson. He was very poor, yet well‑known for his piety and great
devotions. Once, a poor person who had no children was about to pass away. He
called for Reb Pinchas Yehoshua and asked him to recite the Kaddish (prayer in
memory of the dead). In return, he would leave his Tefillin to Reb Pinchas
Yehoshua for son. Reb Pinchas Yehoshua agreed. A few weeks later, an extremely
wealthy person, also childless, was about to pass away. He also wanted Reb
Pinchas Yehoshua to recite the Kaddish for him. The wealthy man was willing to
leave Reb Pinchas Yehoshua enough money to support him for many years. However,
Reb Pinchas refused. "I am already reciting Kaddish for someone else,"
he told him. Reb Pinchas Yehoshua was afraid the poor person for whom he had
already begun saying Kaddish might object, as his request was first.
One day, Reb Pinchas Yehoshua made the pilgrimage to Rebbe Nachman's gravesite in Uman, together with Reb Avraham Sternhartz [then in his early twenties] and Reb
Motele Shochet, both of whom were very close to him. The three of them prayed
there for many hours. Reb Avraham writes:
As we turned to leave Rebbe Nachman's gravesite, Reb Pinchas Yehoshua began to
tremble with great trepidation. "My friends," he said, "I looked
at myself, and I saw that I have been reincarnated and again into this
world." He then began detailing the various generations in which he lived.
He said that he had been alive in the time of a certain Tanna [one of the sages
of the Mishna], and then in the generation of a particular tzaddik... As
he spoke, Reb Pinchos Yehoshua carefully weighed his words, their tremendous
truth being clear. We believed him because we knew of his greatness and his
incredible devotion to G‑d. He even told us how many times his soul had
already come back to this world.
Reb Pinchas Yehoshua found it very hard to understand why he ‑‑ of all the people that lived in the world when his soul was first incarnated ‑‑
why he alone should have to endure this. The Tanna rectified other souls; why
not his? Why did he have to suffer so many incarnations? Reb Pinchas Yehoshua
began saying to himself, "Why was my soul left without rectification? Why
was I left in the depths, in the abyss of my sins, so that I had to come down
to this world again? Perhaps I will be rectified the second time around?"
Then he told us that he came back in the generation of a different tzaddik.
This tzaddik worked to rectify the Jewish souls and bring them back to
their source. But as before, his soul was left without its tikkun, and
he had to return again and again. "I tried as hard as I could to
understand why this was happening," Reb Pinchas Yehoshua continued.
"Finally, I realized that I alone was responsible for my fate. I, myself,
my difficult nature and improper deeds, were what made it impossible for anyone
to ever provide me with a tikkun. Have I not learned in the Talmud that
'the tzaddikim are builders'? It must have been my fault that these
righteous leaders were powerless to include me in the buildings of holiness
that they built."
I looked at Reb Motele Shochet, and he looked back at me. Neither of us could
believe what we were hearing. We stood there transfixed as Reb Pinchas Yehoshua
went on. "When a constructing a building," he said, "a mason
gathers all the stones that he needs for the first level of the building and
begins by cutting and chipping away at the corners. He forms the stones so that
each one fits properly into place. When he has finished the first level, he
again gathers the stones he needs and shapes them so that he can then erect the
second level. So it goes, level after level. At each level, the mason must make
sure that all the stones he uses for the building are suitably formed. Many
times we see that builders come across certain odd‑shaped stones which
they try to use, only to find them too awkward to be made into a proper fit. In
the end, they have no choice but to discard them.
"The same is true in spirituality. The great tzaddikim try to build ‑‑ by attempting to rectify the Jewish souls. The Torah calls these souls
'stones.' The tzaddikim work hard at this. Each stone they come across,
every soul they encounter, they do their very best to fit into the building of
holiness they try to erect."
Reb Pinchas Yehoshua interrupted his words with a long, deep sigh. Then, with even
greater intensity, he began again. "When it was my soul's turn to play its
part in the building, I came before this great Tanna. He attempted to correct
me, but found that he could not. He worked very hard to ' shape' me, trying all
different angles. However, no matter what he tried, it did not work. As soon as
he corrected me on one side, I was found to be crooked on another side.
Whichever way he turned my soul, it was still impossible for him to find me a
place in his building.' Seeing that it was futile, this Tanna just left me
alone. There was absolutely nothing he could do. The exact same thing happened
the second time my soul descended into this world; and so it was with every
subsequent reincarnation. All the tzaddikim tried to rectify me, but
their efforts failed. I was left alone through all those generations, thrown
away like an odd‑shaped stone, to be thrown and kicked about forever
"Yet G‑d, Whose kindness is forever, wants all Jews to be rectified, no matter what they have done. He saw my difficulties and sent me back to this world
again. However, this time, in my current reincarnation, I found something
completely new - a tzaddik with a
'building power' that I had never seen in any of my previous incarnations. This
was Rebbe Nachman of Breslov! All the Upper Worlds tremble in awe of his
greatness and his holiness. Rebbe Nachman believed that a person could always
come close to G‑d, no matter how distant he was. In a strong voice he
called out from the depths of his heart, 'Never give up! Never despair!' This
Rebbe Nachman described himself as 'a river that can cleanse all stains. From
Creation until today, there never was a tzaddik who spoke such words,
and with such strength and such power. In addition to hearing about Rebbe
Nachman, G-d gave me the privilege of knowing Rebbe Nachman's closest disciple,
Reb Noson. He taught me Rebbe Nachman's lessons and brought me to serve G-d.
"This is where I am now.
"And now, when I think about this, I cannot help but wonder: How, after being so distant from G‑d all those years, how is it possible that I should I
merit such a great light? How could someone so undeserving come to know of
Rebbe Nachman?
"I only understood this after I studied the Hallel [psalms recited on most
festivals]. 'The stone despised by all the builders has become the
cornerstone.' This soul ‑‑ the very same soul that had been
discarded by all the great tzaddikim has now come to the tzaddik who
is the "cornerstone," the foundation of the entire world. 'This has
come from G‑d; it is wondrous in our eyes.' It is truly wondrous how G‑d
deals with every single soul, making certain that it achieves its tikkun.
The great tzaddikim never give up trying to correct all souls, because
this is what G‑d truly wants.
"I saw from this," Reb Pinchas Yehoshua concluded, "that no matter what happens to us, we must understand that there is salvation. We can always come
back to G‑d,
"And these are the next words we say in the Hallel: 'This is the day that G‑d has made, we will rejoice...' For today, in our generation, G‑d gave us
such a great leader, Rebbe Nachman, who has instilled in us the faith always to
turn to G‑d ‑‑ no matter where we are. Then G‑d will
redeem the Jewish People, and we will have nothing but great joy and happiness
all the rest of our days, amen!"
Translator's note: This took place
in approximately 1885.
From "Pesach Anecdotes," The Breslov Haggadah © 1989 Breslov Research Institute
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