The Most Important Ingredient

An Extreme Transformation 

When the rabbi saw the old innkeeper dressed in his Shabbat clothing, he was startled and alarmed. He had been staying with him for a few days, during which he had gotten to know him as a very simple Jew, even vulgar and rough. And suddenly the man had changed into an angel, his facing shining with light.  

The rabbi was puzzled by the extreme change. “It is possible that I have been mistaken about him?” he thought. “Perhaps he is a hidden tzaddik?” 

On motzei Shabbat the peasant went back to his original form, and the rabbi began to observe him carefully, but didn’t see anything special. Moreover, it was quite clear that this was an am haaretz (an ignorant Jew), who perhaps didn’t even know how to read and write. But on the next Shabbat the awesome sight repeated itself, and the Jew shone with a holy light, and the holiness and enjoyment of Shabbat were evident on his face and shone out from his being.  

The rabbi couldn’t contain himself anymore and spoke to the Jew in private: “I am Rabbi Shmuel Yitzchak Shur, Chief Rabbi of this region, and I hereby order you to reveal to me who you really are, and how you merit the wondrous light of Shabbat.” 

The Old Innkeeper’s Secret 

So the innkeeper began to tell his story: 

“Honorable Rabbi, I am a simple Jew, and I have only a rudimentary knowledge of the Torah. I have no special spiritual advantages. But I will tell you a story that happened to me when I was young.  

“I was a cattle-trader and went to the fair in Czernowitz.  I made a very large sum of money in my business deals there. When Shabbat arrived, I looked for a good place to hide the money and went to the home of the Rabbi, the famous tzaddik, Rabbi Chaim of Czernowitz and left it at his home.” 

Just to explain: Czernowitz is on what is today the border between Romania and Ukraine. The tzaddik, Rabbi Chaim, the town’s rabbi and author of the books Be’er Mayim Chayim and Sidduro shel Shabbat, was known mainly for being wholly immersed in the holiness of Shabbat. All week he would prepare for Shabbat and long for it, and on Shabbat itself he would ascend to the upper worlds. 

This matter was so noticeable that chassidim passed on, from generation to generation, the fact that on Shabbat he was one amma (approximately ½ a meter) taller than on weekdays. 

Immediately upon leaving the mikvah after immersing himself in honor of Shabbat, the light of Shabbat would settle on him, to the point that his body would change completely, and his Shabbat clothes were much bigger and longer than his weekday clothes.  

And now, back to the story… 

The Blessing of Shabbat 

“On motzai Shabbat I went to the house of the rabbi. He went to the place where he had hidden the money and found out that a burglar had stolen it. It was a huge amount, beyond what the rabbi could possibly pay. According to the law, he was supposed to take an oath that he had not taken the money. The tzaddik was so frightened by the idea of an oath that he fainted, and his life was in danger.  

“I didn’t hesitate. I bent over him and shouted repeatedly in his ear: ‘Honorable Rabbi, I forgive you completely, and will never sue you.’ When the Rabbi heard this through the fog that was in his mind, he woke up. When he recovered, he said to me: ‘My son, you have saved my life. How can I pay you for this? What blessing should I give you? If you want wealth, you see that it can come and go; if longevity, that is not the purpose of a human being. Therefore, I will bless you that will merit to feel the holiness of Shabbat like I do…’ 

“Since that day, all three blessings have been fulfilled. I have reached a venerable age and have never lacked anything. But the main thing is that every Shabbat I feel flooded with a spiritual light and supreme pleasure – not of this world. That’s why you saw me looking like that on Shabbat, and it is not because I am hiding something from you…” 

Days Full of Light 

My dear fellow-Jews, many are in the habit of thinking that Shabbat and the holidays are just regular days. True, they have certain halachot and one is forbidden to do certain types of work. True, one goes to the beit knesset (synagogue), and one eats and rests and it is always nice to rest and spend time with the family. True, one feels good and refreshed and there is an atmosphere of calm. Perhaps some of those of higher spiritual stature feel even a slight elevation, rising a few inches above the ground. But that is still very, very far from the truth. 

The truth is that on every Shabbat and Yom Tov, a tremendous illumination descends upon the world. A form of light and pleasure unlike anything in this world – and not even close to it. 

If we would really feel the light of Shabbat – nothing would be able to tempt us and budge us from the truth, not even one bit. And this light belongs to every Jew! 

We must not accept the fact that we do not feel the illumination of Shabbat and the holidays. Why should we be deprived of it? Why shouldn’t we feel it, too? 

Spiritual Light is as Necessary as Air to Breathe 

You should know that the light of the holidays is not just something “good and nice”, or “a spiritual treat”, something one can manage without; rather, it is critical for us, because it is the biggest inoculation against all the generation’s temptations – if not for ourselves, then for our children. A child who has felt the light of Shabbat at home, who has sat at a Seder table that had not just matzahs, wine and delicacies, but also the true light of the Exodus from Egypt, supreme lights that according to the Ari Hakadosh do not come down any other night in the year – the soul of such a child receives a thorough inoculation against all the generation’s temptations. And oh, don’t they need it! 

Who can give this to children? Only we, their parents! Rabbi Chaim of Czernowitz could give a Jew the light of Shabbat only because he himself had it. No person can give what he doesn’t have himself. If we, as parents, do not feel this light on Shabbat and holidays, how will we pass it on to our sons and daughters? 

Therefore, the Shabbat illumination, the Pesach illumination, the Purim one and that of every holiday or holy time – are not extras. They are something critical, vital and basic for our existence as G-d-fearing Jews in a generation of darkness. And they are even more critical when it comes to passing on our heritage and the spiritual existence of the coming generations.  

Drops of Light as we Rush Around 

And the big novel idea is that each and every one of us can achieve this status of receiving the light – each one according to his level and his preparation. 

What should we do? In between the cleaning and the shopping and the cooking and the rushing around and the housework, childcare and everyday work – each and every one of us, man and woman, all ages, should try first of all to understand that this holiday is not just a meal, but a big shower of light. And each and every one of us should begin to want this light, this shower from above, this revealing of the Shechina and faith, and the revelation of this supreme pleasure that purifies a person, raising him higher and higher. Don’t be stuck in your habits. Begin to open up to the spiritual world of holiness, to the real light of this world. Begin to understand that it is relevant to you as well, at every spiritual level you may be on. 

And now, all it depends on is on preparing yourself, which means, of course, learning the halachot of the holiday, learning the ideas of the holiday, and mainly preparing for the saying of the Haggadah and for the transmitting of the holy story to the children. But the main thing is simply to pray to Hashem in your own words: “Master of the Universe, allow me to feel the light of Pesach. Master of the universe, allow me to taste the real taste of Pesach.” One can make this request in the car, or while shopping, while cooking or while cleaning; one can make it after shmoneh esrei or saying Tehillim, and at any time at all. 

Every word is another drop of light; every request is another ray of spiritual light that will be showered upon you and your children during the coming holiday. 

And if you are already speaking with the Creator, pray for all Jewish people that they will merit to observe the Pesach properly and be protected from eating chametz, and that all of them will experience the light of complete and true faith in Hashem, which is the light that returns every year on this holiday; and ask, that the same way we were redeemed then, and the light of the redemption comes down into the world every year anew – so too we will be redeemed with mercy soon, and the beit mikdash will be built and we will enjoy the complete light of Pesach with the korban Pesach, speedily in our days, Amen.