* Translated by Janine Muller Sherr
Today marks 41 years since the passing of the renowned rabbi and kabbalist, the Baba Sali, Rabbi Yisrael Abuchatziera. His life story can give us strength, especially during these difficult times.
Here are the words of Rav Zevik Harel:
“People often speak about the Baba Sali’s mastery of Torah and the wonders he performed. But I would like to focus on his unbelievable life, a life filled with anguish and suffering.
When he was 18 years old, his father, who was also his teacher, passed away, and he became very close to his father’s older brother, Rabbi Yitzchak. Four years later, that uncle was killed by robbers in Morocco. The Baba Sali’s older brother, who served as the city’s rabbi, was subsequently killed by the rulers of Morocco and the Baba Sali took on his position.
His first wife died while giving birth to his daughter, who also didn’t survive. He remarried, but he and his wife couldn’t have children for nearly a decade. Years later, his beloved younger brother came to visit and was killed in a fatal car accident on his way home.
And that isn’t the end of the list. One tragic loss is often enough to make a person hard and bitter. But that is not what happened to the Baba Sali—instead, he grew from his suffering and rose from the ashes.
For there are two ways to respond to suffering: you can fall apart, or you can become more empathic to the suffering of others. The Baba Sali was keenly sensitive to the anguish of others —from the poor people who came knocking at his door to the pain of his closest neighbor.
Hundreds of thousands of people came to him because they knew that he understood what it meant to lose a father or wife or to wait for years to be blessed with a child. His love and prayers for others came from a compassionate heart. One year, he noticed that people were distributing Chanukah money to children in the form of bills and he suggested that they give out coins instead. When they asked him why, he explained that children would be more excited about a shiny coin than a piece of paper— such was his level of sensitivity even towards children.”
Today, in memory of the saintly Baba Sali, you are encouraged to light a candle, learn Torah, and follow in his ways of loving kindness and compassion.
